A New Beginning
by xeikm
Summary: Brothers, Terra and Zexion Hewley, move to New Jersey to live with their uncle after their father becomes fed up with their wild antics. The brothers have to adjust from living in California to a small town, while discovering love in unexpected places.
1. Trouble

Author's Note: Welcome to the first chapter of A New Beginning! This exciting fan fic contains strong language, adult content, sexual relations between men, lemons, incest, rape, drug references, and underage drinking! WOoO! I hope you guys enjoy it though. :] The first chapter pretty much speaks for itself. I'll let you guys read it and tell me what you think. Alright. Done! Read and review.

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

"**Trouble" by Pink: **

**No attorneys, to plead my case  
No opiates, to send me into outer space  
And my fingers are bejeweled  
With diamonds and gold but that ain't  
Gonna help me now**

**I'm trouble, yeah trouble now  
I'm trouble y'all, I disturb my own town  
I'm trouble, yeah, trouble now  
I'm trouble y'all, I got trouble in my town**

**

* * *

**

There was nothing down the highway but a forest full of trees. It was starting to get dark outside, making his long walk even more terrifying as he thought about how stupid he was for running off like that. It wasn't all his brother's fault that this had to happen to them. He was equally responsible for their dad kicking them out and sending them off to live with his younger brother across the country.

They were being shipped off from home to live with their charming uncle. His beautifully, intellectual San Francisco was taken away from him for some small town in the middle of New Jersey. Like seriously, what was his father thinking sending them to some hellhole in Jersey? Did he not see the Jersey Shore? If anything, the brothers would only get into more trouble if they end up partying it up with Snooki and the Situation.

It was safe to assume that Zexion Hewley was beyond pissed off as he stormed down the empty highway with only a backpack stuffed with clothes. His Touch stuffed into his pocket along with his wallet, his blackberry, his knife (for defense purposes), and his DSi which had his favorite game in it. The lilac haired boy of sixteen was clad in pair of bulky skater shoes, torn skinny jeans, a white v-neck, and a black cardigan with a red bowtie pinned to the cardigan. His checker-patterned backpack was one of the few things he had from home.

Zexion had every intention of returning to San Francisco…as soon as he could get the money to go back.

A sharp sigh escaped Zexion's lips as he stood there, looking up to the darkening sky. It was already six according to his watch. It would only be two more hours at the most before Ohio was completely covered in darkness. He was really screwed if he didn't find someplace to stay for the night. He didn't know if there were any psychos running around the woods.

"The next town is still twenty miles though," he sighed with a frustrated growl. "Damnit Terra, why did you have to be such a dick?"

He was a little surprised to hear a car coming down the road and he brightened up a little at this. The boy spun around, expecting to see his brother's '68 Firebird coming down the road. His grateful thoughts were cancelled out though when he didn't hear the familiar roar of the engine. Instead, it was a lousy pickup truck that was coming down the road, on his end of it.

Zexion ignored the truck and kept on walking, pissed off that his father sent them through this in the first place. It's not like they were Lindsey Lohan bad! Sure, they got busted by the cops a couple of times, but it was nothing tragic. It wasn't like it would keep Zexion from going to an Ivy League College, while Terra…well, Terra was meant to be a rockstar or at least a mechanic.

While his thoughts kept swirling around, the truck slowed down to a crawl next to him. Zexion continued to ignore the car as he figured that it would go away so long as he didn't pay the driver and his passenger any attention. Much to his revulsion, the driver and his passenger were two ugly looking guys, and he did mean ugly. One of them was missing his front tooth, the other looked like he had a glass eye, and they both smelt like cow shit.

"Ay kid," shouted the driver. "You shudn't be walkin' round these parts this late. Its gettin' dark, the creeps might come out to getcha! You might wanna come with us."

"I'd rather take my chances with Jason then go anywhere with you hillbillies," said Zexion. "So, I suggest you two keep on driving. Goodbye, boys."

"Tis one got a mouth on him," laughed the passenger.

The truck came to a sudden halt, which made Zexion's senses tingle at the possible attack. His hand was already on the hilt of his knife as he slowly pulled it out from his pocket. He kept it hidden in the sleeve of his cardigan as all those self-defense lessons his dad paid for all came rushing back to him.

Since both men appeared older and larger than him, Zexion had to use his small size to his advantage. He needed to sneak around them to get away. If he was lucky, he could take them both down long enough to grab the truck and go. He would take it town and tell the cops what happened first that way he wasn't the one to get busted.

"Come on, boy," said the driver as he started to approach Zexion. The boy saw both of them in their dirty overalls with beer emanating from their breaths. Even better, they were drunk so they wouldn't know what they would be doing. "You know you wanna ave a little fun wit us."

"Don't worry, doll," said the passenger. "We'll be gentle wit ya."

Zexion rolled his eyes by just how disgusting these ass wipes were. "Fuck off, already," shouted Zexion. If he was lucky then they would take the hint and go away. If not then he had a weapon to use to fuck them both up if need be.

Just as the men were about to jump Zexion, a roaring sound filled the highway and caught all of their attention. Zexion instantly recognized that familiar roar as the car came speeding down the highway. It came to a screeching halt only a few feet behind them, the driver jumped out of the black car, and came bellowing after them.

In all his time of living, Zexion was never so grateful to see his big brother.

The nineteen year old Terra Hewley was the opposite of Zexion. Were Zexion was short and fragile, Terra was tall and built like an athlete. Terra's hair was brown that was spiked up from the front to his bangs that went down to his neck. Whereas Zexion just had it at a medium length on the sides, but exceptionally long bangs. Terra also had their father's blue eyes, while Zexion inherited their mother's gray colored eyes. Terra also had color on his skin, while Zexion was nearly as pale as a ghost.

He was dressed up simply in a tight-fitting t-shirt that showed off his muscles from his high school basketball days. His jeans were loose enough not to hinder his movement since Terra was by far a better fighter then Zexion was. The dark look that Terra had in his eyes frightened even Zexion as he worried what would happen to the hillbilly bastards when he noticed the gun that Terra had in its holster.

"Get in the car, Zexion," growled Terra. He walked passed his brother, pushing him in the direction of the Firebird. Zexion wasted no time running towards the car as Terra dealt with the hillbillies. "I suggest that the both of you go fuck off somewhere before I have to kick your asses! And if I ever catch you tryin' to touch my brother again, I will fuck you up so bad that you'll be begging for death! Ya got me?"

They both nodded their heads, especially after they noticed the gun strapped to Terra's hip. They ran into the pickup and took off down the dead highway. Terra began to smile at another job well done as he walked back to the car that Zexion was situating himself in. Now, it was time for him to deal with the next problem.

Terra got into the car and returned his gun to the glove compartment where it would hopefully remain for the remainder of the trip. He gave out a calming sigh as he turned his head to see Zexion silently sitting in passenger seat with the backpack on his lap. "Did you have your knife on you?" asked the elder brother.

"I had it up my sleeve just in case," whispered Zexion.

"At least you're not a total idiot," Terra said as he started the engine.

The Firebird kicked up a cloud of dirt as Terra drove it back onto the road, heading into the next town. The car remained silent as the brothers reached the next highway marker. It said they were fifteen miles from the nearest town, which meant they would be there very soon at the rate that Terra was driving.

That still gave Terra plenty of time to do what he had to do.

"What the fuck were you thinking when you ran off from me at Cleveland!" shouted Terra. "Do you have any idea how stupid and idiotic that was? I damn near called dad to activate your fucking tracker so I could find you. I spent two hours driving around that damn city trying to find your stupid ass! How could someone as smart as you be so stupid? What if I didn't make it there in time. What if those drunken hillbillies got you? Huh, Zexion? They would've fucking raped you and God knows what else."

"I'm sorry," interrupted Zexion.

"No you're not!" shouted Terra. "You're just saying that so I will stop yelling at you, which I'm not going to do." The elder shook his head as he kept his eyes focused on the darkening road. He flipped on his headlights so he could see easier and dedicate more time to chewing his brother's ass out. "I almost had a fucking heart attack when I saw that you were gone, Zexion. You scared me to death…I thought I lost you like we lost mom. Zex, you're all I have left. We're all that we have left. Dad doesn't give a damn about us, it's just you and me at this point. I can't believe you just ran off like that, no note or anything."

Zexion was starting to feel bad at this point. It was no secret that Zexion tended to fall on the arrogant, selfish prick side of the genetic tree that was closer to their dad. But even Zexion had some semblance of a heart and compassion for other people. While Terra behaved more like their mother, always on the defensive and protecting those they cared for the most. Terra wasn't lying when he said Zexion was all that he had, and Zexion knew that because Terra was all he had left too.

"I am really sorry, Terra," whispered Zexion. "I just couldn't deal with this anymore. I'm just sick and tired off all of this."

"I know, bro," said Terra, "but the next time you run off at least write a note."

The brothers remained silent after that, listening to the music coming from Terra's iPod.

* * *

As they rode into town, Zexion got out his blackberry to see what the deal was.

"Let's see how much dear old dad left us with today," said the lilac haired boy. He opened their joint to check out just how much money they had today. Since their dad kicked them out of the house, he left the brothers with only so much money in their account. Basically, it was two hundred dollars that would pay for food, gas, and a one bed motel room. Not even a cheap hotel room, no they had to stay in a motel.

You through one ragging party that trashes the house that leads to the cops being called and busting you because there was alcohol and a few kids snuck in some pot then all of a sudden you have everything taken from you.

At least they didn't get charged with possession of drugs…just for the liquor they stole from their dad.

The page opened and Zexion scrolled down the window to see the gorgeous numbers down at the bottom. A frown formed on his lips as he saw just how much they had left. "Only a hundred and twenty!" said the revolted boy. "I thought we had almost three hundred left?"

"We did," said Terra, "but a certain someone ran away and I had to drive all over town to find him. Gas wasn't that cheap in Cleveland."

"Sorry," mumbled Zexion as he exited the window.

Terra was already starting to forgive his brother for the incident, seeing that the kid was safe and sound. He parked into the parking lot of a Motel 6, which was actually cheap this time to get out of the car to get them a room. Zexion remained sitting in the car then took a glance at the backseat that was stuffed with their bags and junk. Well, it was only a few bags and some of their more needed personal belongings. Uncle Zack and Aunt Aerith were supposed to have the rest covered, at least they didn't have to provide their own bed.

Knowing their luck though, they'd have to share that nasty studio above the garage.

"If Uncle Zack actually cleans it then it'll be a miracle," mumbled Zexion.

Terra returned to the car not long after that with the keycard in his hands. He waved it around his brother's face before telling him to start getting some of their stuff. They unpacked a couple of things from the car and took it to their room.

With that taken care of, the brothers got to work on coming up with a plan on getting something to eat.

* * *

Alpha, New Jersey was a somewhat quite town to live in. There was the occasional, criminal activity that made things go bonkers, but there hadn't been a single murder or rape case in town for years. And that much made it safer than some of the other towns in the country.

Zackary Fair was putting the finishing touches to the basement bedroom that had spent the better part of eight years as a total disaster. It was originally supposed to be his workout room, but that came to a halt since his job was actually next to a reasonably priced gym. Instead of working out at home, he just walked next door to the gym to work up a sweat.

So he just made the place a little more hospitable for a nineteen year old boy to live in. They put down a rug over the tiled floor, gave it a fresh coat of pain, bought a full-sized mattress with the cash his brother sent him, got a dresser too, there was a bookshelf, and they also had to clean out the closet that was filled junk they had been meaning to get rid of for years. The room was good enough for his oldest nephew to live in without too much complaints. There was a small bathroom down here with the laundry room and the family room that Zack had set up ages ago. It was more of a man cave then a family room, but it still worked.

There was a couch, a mini fridge, and a TV that got him through the night whenever his wife decided to kick him out of the bed.

Plus, the living room couch always gave him back problems.

Zack gave a heavy sigh as he patted himself on the back for the good job he did. It took them almost a week to set it all up, but it was finished. Terra would survive in the basement, while Zexion had to share a room with Sora.

"Daddy!" shouted Sora. Zack spun back around to see his baby boy rushing towards him. He caught his brown haired, six year old son in his arms and brought the kid up into the air. "Ah! Daddy stop! I want to ask you something."

"Go for it, kiddo," said Zack. "What do you want to know?"

"When are Terra and Zexy supposed to get here?" asked the curious boy. "I want to play with them! They always know the coolest games."

"They should be here tomorrow. Now, you need to go upstairs and get ready for bed. Is your room cleaned? You know you have to share your room with your cousin now."

Sora nodded his head as his dad carried him up the stairs. "Me and mommy spent all day cleaning it up! She even taught me how to make my own bed," he said, happily. "Zexy's stuff takes up too much space though. His bed, desk, and dresser are going to keep me from playing in my room."

"Well, you're just going to have to play more in the living room or family room," Zack said as he put his son down. "I'm sure Terra won't mind you running around in the basement as long as you stay out of his room."

"Okay!" said a cheerful Sora as he ran off to his room.

Zack simply laughed at his son when he turned to see his wife, Aerith standing in the kitchen. She was cleaning the few dishes that were left in the sink from dinner. Zack had a weak smile on his face. He knew that Aerith wasn't a big fan of Terra and Zexion coming to live here. She was too worried that his nephews would be too much of a bad influence on Sora.

It wasn't like he couldn't blame her either. The boys were pretty bad, they hadn't always been that way. It was only after their mom dad when they started to act out more and Angeal distancing himself from his boys didn't help that much either. Zack was sure that he could help turn those boys' lives around, and if he couldn't then that would mean he was a terrible social worker.

Besides, Squall was ex-military and living with them. Zack could get him to pitch in when it came to whipping those boys into shape. And that would be a fun adventure all in itself.

* * *

"I want to hurl!" cried Zexion.

Terra started to laugh at his brother as they returned from the burger joint. There was only one relatively decent place to eat in town and that was a burger place by the other end of the highway. He thought the burgers were delicious and had the right combo of meat and grease, but Zexion seemed to think differently.

His weak ass stomach couldn't hack it.

Zexion ran to the bathroom, locking the door behind him as he used the restroom. Terra went through one of Zexion's bags to get a can of Lysol from it. It looks like they would be putting that can to use tonight as he left the door partially opened.

Terra quickly stripped down to his boxers and tossed his clothes on the floor. He proceeded to turn on the TV, while his nearly nude self began to lounge around the room. Out from the corner of his eye he noticed a couple of girls that just happened to pass by the door. They were fairly cute and caught him looking as well.

"Hey," he said, sensuously as he flexed his muscles a bit while winking at them.

The girls blushed and smiled before they ran off to their room.

A smile remained on Terra's face as he got to close the door before someone who wouldn't find his nudity attractive passed by. Then again, who wouldn't find his nudity to be attractive? He had a six pack, a killer v-cut, and biceps that a lot of guys would kill to have.

Anyways, Zexion came out of the bathroom just to notice the Lysol sitting there. He grabbed that and began to spray down the bathroom before joining his brother on the bed. "That is the last time I'm letting you choose a place to eat," he said, bitterly. "That place almost killed me!"

"Please, Zex, you've had greasier things back in Cali," said Terra.

"Yeah, but I think that place didn't cook their meat properly. I could have food poisoning now because of them."

"Or just an upset stomach. If it gets worse then I'll get you some Pepto." Terra began to shut off the TV before he started to crawl into the bed. "Now shut up and get some sleep. We have a long drive tomorrow."

Zexion huffed at his brother as he changed into a pair of shorts and kept his v-neck on as he got into bed as well.

"I'm going to kill you later," said Zexion.

"Quit bitching otherwise I'll leave your ass on the side of the road while you're sleeping," warned Terra.

* * *

That afternoon, Terra and Zexion pulled into Alpha with their eyes attacking the town as they saw just how little it changed. It was still, for the most part, a small town that showed little to no progress into the 21st century. The town was littered with mom and pop shops/restaurants with not a single chain in sight. Terra remembered something about their dad telling them that the chains were kept around the town with the actual downtown area kept for historical purposes.

Zexion found the town to be very dreary with nothing in town standing out to him. He could tell that the next two years of his life were going to be long and boring without any sign of getting any better. Why was he being punished by being sent to this dreary epitome of soul shattering, small town hell?

"We're in Hell," mumbled Zexion. "Now all we need is for Lucifer to show up and start poking at our insides."

Terra pulled up to the park, desperately wanting to stretch his stiff legs out. As he pulled into the lot, they both noticed a tall ass kid with spiky red hair passing by him dressed from head to toe in black with a demonic looking face on his shirt. Oh, the irony. "Hello Lucifer," said Terra. "I guess we had our welcoming party." It was only a moment later that a blond left the park, following the red head closely. Terra felt his heart skip a beat as he looked at this blue eyed boy with such innocent looks that he would make even an angel weep with jealously.

And as soon as he came, the blond disappeared with the red head to another car.

"I say we head back to California," said Zexion. "This town is mostly Catholic anyways. They crucify people like us."

"They crucify fags, I'm bisexual, I can play it cool," said Terra as he cut off the engine.

The brothers stepped out of the car and made their way to the park to get a bit of exercise before going to their uncle's house. And their form of exercise for the day would just be walking around, enjoying the nature around them. Zexion was mumbling to himself about how much he hated this place when an incoming football caught him off his guard. Terra had never heard Zexion scream so loud as he ducked out of the way of the projectile.

Terra caught the ball with ease, while his brother hid behind him. This caused the elder to laugh as he pushed his brother away from him. "Easy there, Zex," he said, calmly. "It's just a football. By the way, you scream like a total girl"

"You would too if a flying object of death was going to smack you in the head!" shouted Zexion.

Neither one of them noticed the group of guys running towards them. They were all dressed up in gym shorts and identical t-shirts for the local high school. They all practically screamed football players with their buffed out bodies and the fact all their clothes were advertising the Alpha Wolves football team.

One of the guys left the pack looking like the "alpha" of the players. He was a tall guy that was equal to Terra in height. He had curly, auburn that was mixed with spikes that allowed you to focus more on his deep, blue eyes and angular facial features. He was a muscular giant compared to the others though with hairyish arms that went with his hair legs.

"Sorry about that," he said to the brothers. "The ball got away from me. I'm sorry if I hit either of you."

"It's cool, man," Terra said, throwing the ball back at him. "You missed this idiot, but you did make him scream like a girl, which made my day."

That last part though was drowned out by Zexion shouting at the big guy. "Fucking idiot, watch what you're doing! You almost hit me with that damn football!" he shouted, angrily. Terra rolled his eyes as he kept his brother behind him before the guys decided to get violent. Zexion wouldn't stop flapping his gums off though, constantly spewing curses at him.

"Again," said the big guy, "I'm really sorry! No need to go chewing my head off."

"Sorry," said Terra as he covered his brother's mouth. "He has…turrets! He can't help it…we should be going now. Nice meeting you."

Terra dragged the still fuming Zexion back to the car to get his ass to Zack's house before he gets them both killed.

"What was that all about, Lex?" asked one of the other guys.

"I have no idea," said a very confused Lexaeus, watching Zexion very closely as he left.

* * *

So Terra had to save Zexion' ass once again from getting beaten, but this time it was from football players this time. Terra wished there was one place in the world that Zexion could live without picking fights with the locals. If he kept this up, one day Terra was just going to leave his ass and let him learn his lessons the hard way.

Either way, the brothers followed the familiar road to their aunt and uncle's house. The Firebird pulled up into the driveway as the brothers began to stare at the familiar red bricked house. It had been a few years since they last came here. Back when Sora was only two and their mom was still alive.

They began to gather their things as they left the car, mentally preparing themselves for the worst. They knew they were going to have to work together to survive this. It wasn't like their Uncle Zack was a drill sergeant or anything, he was a social worker which made him worse.

"Hey guys!" shouted their Uncle Zack.

"Hey uncle," Terra shouted back.

"Hi," Zexion said, simply.

It was family moments like these that the brothers wished they had some pot on them.


	2. Help I'm Alive

Author's Note: Here is the lovely second chapter! :] I brought in more characters to make it a little more interesting. Hope you guys find it to your liking! This story won't be updated as frequently because of school, and i'm more worried about my other two fics. But once I finish Bullet For My Soul then the story will be upgraded to a priority fic. I hope you guys don't mind a wait! Read and review.

"**Help, I'm Alive" by Metric:**

I tremble, they're gonna eat me alive  
If I stumble they're gonna eat me alive  
Can you hear my heart beating like a hammer?  
Beating like a hammer

Help, I'm alive, my heart keeps beating like a hammer  
Hard to be soft, tough to be tender  
Come take my pulse, the pace is on a runaway train

* * *

Lunch with the family wasn't that bad for a nice change. Terra and Zexion were sitting at the dining room table with a plate of fries and cheeseburgers sitting in front of them. Zexion was still traumatized from his previous burger experience that he only ate the fries. Terra ended up eating Zexion's burger since he didn't want such good food to go to waste.

The Fair home was quant, very different from what they were used to back in Cali. It wasn't all modernized with all the latest tech like back home. Zack still had some cool toys, but it was more obvious that a family lived here with all the family pictures on the walls, Sora and Zack's crap all over the place, and that warm smell that could only come from a real house not a penthouse.

The brothers told the adventure of their cross-country road trip to their little cousin. Sora's eyes were bug eyed as he listened to the fascinating tale of everything that happened during their trip. He looked just as excited about the story as any could would at Christmas. Then again, Sora just loved his cool cousins to death. They made sure not to include the part were Zexion ran off in Cleveland and Terra almost shot a few dudes. That part was kept out for obvious reasons. Maybe they would tell the runt that story once they figured out if he was a little more trustworthy and not a loose-lipped kid.

Aerith returned from the kitchen with some more fries, which Zexion accepted. She took a seat beside her husband with her brown hair rolling off her shoulder. "It sounds like you boys had fun on your trip," she said, only slightly sarcastic. Terra and Zexion knew that Aerith wasn't a big fan of them living here, but at this point they didn't really care. "Oh honey, did you explain the rules to them?"

"Not yet," said Zack.

"Rules?" said the brothers.

"Of course, you're here because you messed up back home," said Zack. "We weren't going to give you the chance to chance to screw up again. So, here are the basics. You will both be in this house by eleven, everyday unless told otherwise. If you'll be late then you must call thirty minutes prior. Zexion, you will be attending Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow, while…"

Zexion nearly flipped out of his chair when he heard that name. Terra was laughing his ass off, which only fueled the fire in Zexion. "Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow!" shouted the lilac haired boy. "Are you serious? You're going to send me to Catholic School? Seriously? Of all the types of private schools, you send me to a Catholic one? Why didn't you just send me to Iran with a big stamp on my forehead that says fagot? I'd rather go to public school and risk getting shanked for my lunch money."

"I think it's hilarious," laughed Terra. "I'm sure you'll have loads of fun."

"Shut up before I kill you, Terra!" growled Zexion.

"Calm down, Zexion," said Zack. "You'll be fine. Anyways, as I was saying, Zexion will be attending O.L.P.S., while Terra, you'll be going to college at the local school and working the pit with Squall."

Terra was too busy pulling his burger in half to really pay attention to that last bit. The college thing didn't seem so bad, nothing he hadn't been through before. "Wait!" Terra said, realizing the last bit he said. "Did you say I'm working the pit? What's the pit and who is Squall?"

"Squall lives in the apartment above our garage," said Aerith. "He's an old friend of Zack, but don't worry too much. He's getting married so he'll be moving out soon. You'll be working with him at the construction site during the week."

"All that needs to be done is for you to pick your classes and get your books," said Zack.

Terra's left eye was twitching as he realized just how much this fucking sucked. Zexion was having his revenge, knowing that Terra would be too exhausted from class and work to do jack shit. The younger knew that he could drive his brother completely bonkers and there wouldn't be a damn thing he could do to get back at him.

Things finally calmed down once the night came. Once Zexion and Terra knew that they were completely fucked and that they were not getting anywhere with their live in Jersey Hell. It sucked, but they just had to succumb to this hellhole and try to make the most of this nightmare of a life.

* * *

When it was finally time to get some shut eye, Terra retreated down to his basement bedroom for the night. He was actually amazed by how well Zack set the place up. He saw what the room looked prior to Zack fixing the place up so that someone could live in it. The place would make a good enough retreat from everybody since it was so far away from his wardens. And he knew, he might be able to bring somebody here every now and then.

Terra crawled into the bed and threw the covers on top of him and began to drift off to sleep. The first thing to come to mind was that cute blond he saw back at the park. The boy with who had the soulful blue eyes, plump lips, and a thin build that he just wanted to wrap his body around. If Terra ever had the chance to get his hands on him, it was going to be on.

* * *

Sora was softly snoring, which reminded Zexion to the fact that he had to share a room with somebody now. It was a little annoying to share a room with a five year old, but Zack promised him that when Squall moves out that they could switch up the rooms.

Terra would probably get the apartment and Zexion would get the basement, once they proved that they were worthy of his trust. This Squall man, who he still hasn't mean, wasn't leaving till after his December wedding though so there was a still a long time before there was going to be any major changes.

It was barely September after all.

Zexion wondered if he could steal Terra's basement bedroom every once and a while once he started converting the straight boys in town to the gay side of the Force. Well, he just had to make sure they were open to the new, sexual experience first before he put too much of a move on them. He's seen plenty of times what happens to a gay guy when they're trying to fool around with a VERY straight man.

"Monkey poo," whimpered Sora as he drifted off further into sleep.

"Monkey poo?" repeated Zexion. "I really don't want to know what this kid is dreaming."

* * *

The basement was cold like always, just like the heart of that monster. He was always cold whenever he was around him. The boy spent the last three years only knowing pain, torture, and the true meaning of sorrow. It felt like his whole life had been that way, despite it used to being just fine and filled with light and love.

Ventus Hart was trapped in Hell without the outside world realizing just how much pain he was in. His parents knew nothing about what was going on beneath their house; neither did his own twin brother feel the pain. Any sign of suffering was blocked out by Ventus's desperate need to be normal. He made sure that nobody would know about what his own brother was putting him through, what Vanitas was making him do.

It was getting late, and lucky for him Vanitas had yet to come home. Maybe if he was lucky, Vanitas would come home too drunk to do anything to him. Ventus prayed to whatever God was up there that he could get just one night of peace that he so desperately craved. Three years of living in Hell to only get an occasional night of peace.

Ever since Vanitas found out that his little brother was gay, he practically begged his parents to give him his own bedroom in the basement. Nobody was using it and it was just filled with shit they didn't need so their parents agreed. They cleared it out and made it into a massive bedroom for Vanitas, however, it came with the condition that he had to share it with one of his brothers. Roxas was always the loner type and preferred to have his own space so it was obvious that Ventus would have to share the room. Ventus was fine with the sleeping arrangements, at first.

That all change after the first night. Ventus woke up in the middle of the night, naked, gagged, and his wrists were tied to the bed. He was in total shock with his body quivering with fear once he saw Vanitas emerging from the shadows wearing only a pair of boxers. Vanitas stripped himself of that then crawled into bed with Ventus, proceeding to rape his own brother. Ventus lost his virginity that night to his older brother, and was continuously raped almost every night since then.

Since then, Ventus would sleep in fear of his brother coming after him, while everyone else was asleep. Vanitas no longer gagged him anymore since Ventus stayed as quite as a mouse, barely moving even an inch if Vanitas didn't tell him to. All that could be heard were the soft cries that spilled from Ventus's mouth as he was repeatedly violated by Vanitas. His brother warned him that if Ventus told a soul that Vanitas would take him far away from home and used him until he warned bored of brother before killing him.

He could hear the door that led to the backyard opening up, which meant that Vanitas was home now. Fear gripped onto his heart, which made Ventus unable to move even an inch. He was too frightened to do anything because he wasn't sure of just how trashed Vanitas was tonight. He knew that his older brother went to some frat party, he didn't know if he drove himself back home, or just how trashed Vanitas was.

He got his answer soon enough when he felt the covers moving with his nude brother grabbing onto his cold body. Vanitas was surprisingly warm for a change, which made the shivering Ventus calm down a bit. Ventus had learned the hard way to always sleep nude, no matter what, which explained why he was so cold half the time.

Tonight, Ventus got lucky because he could hear Vanitas's snores relatively quick, which meant he was safe for tonight.

Now, he could find some sleep tonight, tomorrow night was a different story.

* * *

Mornings were hectic in the Fair household as everybody ran in twenty different directions, trying to get ready for the day. Terra and Zexion had the pleasure of meeting the mysterious Squall Leonhart that they heard so much about from their uncle in the kitchen, leaning against the counter. Who they saw standing in the kitchen made the both of them drool just a little.

Squall was shorter then Terra, but much taller than Zexion. He was dressed in form-fitting jeans that hugged his ass just nicely with a white long-sleeve covering his fairly muscular torso. Zexion liked Squall's arms, while Terra found his cold blue eyes to be very attractive. He also had a scar that ran from the forehead, down the bridge of his nose, to his cheek. He had long, brown hair that went partly down his back, which he had tied so it wouldn't get in his way.

A hot cup of coffee was in his hands with steam rising out from it. Squall took a good look at the boys and saw that it would be easy to distinguish the two. He was also pleased by Terra's size since that meant he wouldn't totally useless at work. "Morning boys, I'm Squall," he introduced himself, kindly. "Excuse all the chaos. Sora can't find his shoes so your uncle is trying to help him find it, while your aunt is just running late for work. Breakfast is ready if you're hungry. And Terra, you're going to have to drop your brother off at school. Your aunt will give you the directions."

"Alright," said Terra. "So, you're going to be my boss at the pit?"

"Supervisor, and that's right," said Squall. "You won't be going to work with me today though. You need to get signed up for your classes that start next week. You're only going in part-time, but working with me full-time."

"Fine," Terra said as he went to get himself a plate of eggs.

Zexion went over towards Squall, grabbing some coffee for himself. When the boy was about to take the cup, Squall dragged it away from him. Zexion did not like that one bit. You do not fuck with his coffee when he has yet to have his first cup. Terra saw the bloodlust in his brother's eyes and decided to stay out of this one. Squall needed to learn the hard way.

"Give me back my coffee," warned Zexion.

"It's not healthy for someone as young as you," said Squall.

"I'm sixteen," growled Zexion. That crush he had on Squall lasted all but five seconds when he decided he was going to murder this man. It was going to be slow and painful if he didn't get his coffee back. Now, give me back my coffee before I fucking chop your balls off and feed them to a stray dog!"

Squall returned the coffee once he noticed that Zexion had one of the kitchen knives in his hand. He normally didn't back down to little punks like him, but with Zexion that close and armed it was too much of a risk. Zexion grabbed his coffee and stole his brother's breakfast before walking out to the dining room.

Terra laughed into his glass of orange juice, shaking his head at his fleeting brother. He turned towards Squall with a smile growing on his face as he raised the cup up. "Good job," he said, happily. "Sleep with one eye open, boss, because my brother will fuck you up while you're sleeping."

Zexion agreed with him from the dining room, while Squall merely shook his head at them both.

* * *

Finding the school was a lot easier then the brothers expected it to be. The brick building was filling up with kids dressed up in the uniforms that the school forced them to wear. Zexion hated these stupid khakis and hideous blue polo. They honestly expected him to dress like this every day then Zexion was going to have to work to find some form of loophole around this. There was no way he was going to be caught dead in this fashion nightmare, hence why he had an outfit to change into once school ended.

Terra parked and waited for his brother to get his skinny ass out of the car. However, Zexion made no effort to leave the car, which was getting on his nerves. "Are you going to get the fuck out of my car anytime soon?" asked Terra. "You still need to pick up your schedule and find your classes. I have shit I got to do too."

"I'm not leaving," said Zexion. "I want to make an entrance so that's where you come in, Ter. Open the door for me."

"Fine," growled Terra as he got out of the car, wearing a pair of jeans and a tight t-shirt.

If his brother wanted an entrance then he was going to give him one. Of course, it wasn't going to be the entrance that Zexion wanted, which made the young man laugh as he made it to his door. He opened Zexion's door just as the lilac haired boy held his hand out for him to take. Terra took his hand and pulled Zexion out from the car, hard.

Zexion was caught off guard by the action, but was even more surprised by what happened to him next. Terra threw his brother over his shoulder and proceeded to carry him with his face dangling near his brother's ass, which wasn't pleasant. Terra then tossed Zexion on his ass, landing on the grass. The worst part of this was that people were obviously watching the new kid getting tossed out by some strange hunk.

"Asshole!" shouted Zexion.

Terra went back to his car, tossing Zexion his backpack. Then, Terra shot him a million dollar grin before slamming that door shut. "Have a good day at school, little brother," he said, laughing. "Aerith will be here to pick you up. Learn something, be nice to the other kids, and make some friends. I'll see you later!"

"I'm gonna get you back, Terra!" Zexion shouted before stomping off to the building. The kids that had gathered to watch were all shot with daggers by Zexion. They all jumped out of the boy's way as he stormed into the school, while Terra just kept on laughing.

When he was just about to return to the car, he saw his blond angel coming out of a car with a boy who looked almost exactly like him. No doubt in his mind that they were twins, but Terra could easily pick out his angel. The other boy had a look that reminded Terra of his brother, while his angel had the innocence in his eyes that made him melt.

He would do anything for this boy; he'd do anything right now just to learn his name.

"Hurry up, Ventus!" shouted the angel's twin. "We're going to be late."

"I'm coming," said his angel.

Terra watched the twins run off. The more aggressive one was way in the lead, while Ventus took a brief glance at Terra with their eyes meeting at once. For a moment, Terra could tell that he took Ventus's breath away and even made the boy blush a little. Terra shot him a quick smile, which made Ventus blush even more. The moment ended though as Ventus shook it off and ran at full speed into the building.

Terra sighed as he returned to his car, driving off to sign up for his classes.

* * *

All his theories were being proven true as he wandered down the hall to his first period class. Zexion learned that Catholic School was going to be a fate worse than death for him and that he was going to need to find a way to go to public. Like he said last night, he'd rather get shanked for his lunch money then crucified for being gay.

Lucky for him, he met three somewhat kindred spirits in homeroom. He remembered seeing them leaving the park yesterday just when Terra and him parked. Roxas and Ventus Hart were twins that were in his year. Roxas was dating some girl named Naminé who went to public and was like this amateur artist. He was also best friends with the "devil" they saw yesterday, Axel. He was a year older, but he's known the twins since 6th grade. He also saw what Terra did to him, and wouldn't stop laughing about that. Now, Ventus was more a mystery to the ever insightful Zexion. There was no indication of a sexual orientation, hardly any emotion, or had much of an input in everything.

Still, Zexion found them to be mildly entertaining, which would hopefully make his experience here a little more pleasant.

The boy was so trapped in his own thoughts that he failed to notice a girl with blue hair standing in front of him. She had fair skin, a small build, and she was taller than Zexion, which was getting kind of annoying. The twins were at his height at least. "Zexion Hewley, right?" she asked, waiting for Zexion to nod his head. "Hello. I'm Aqua Lane, student council president. I was asked to show you around and help you find your classes. I see you've already met Ven, Roxas, and Axel. Ven and I have been best friends since like forever. He's a sweetheart."

"Good to know," said Zexion. "Can you just hurry up and show me to my next class? I really want to get this shitty year over with."

"Not a big fan of the school?" asked Aqua.

"Not a fan of Jersey," said Zexion. "I want to go back to California where I belong, surrounded by people like me. But, here I am, stuck in this den of woe and conformity."

"Yeah, Jersey is fucking lame, but you get used to it," said Aqua. "Ven and I take frequent trips to Massachusetts and New York though to get away. Maybe you'd like to come sometime?"

"Sounds fantastic," Zexion said as he started to warm up to Aqua.

They kept up with the pleasant talking as Aqua showed him to where his biology class was. While they walked down the hall, Zexion literally ran into the brick wall of a boy that almost killed him with a football yesterday. Zexion was fuming red as he glared up at the man mountain, just itching to chew his head off.

"Watch where you're going, Neanderthal!" snapped Zexion.

"You again," Lexaeus said, shaking his head. "You know, I wasn't trying to hurt you. It was an accident. Can't you learn to just forgive and forget?"

"There's no forgiving, brain dead meatheads like yourself," Zexion said, which led to Aqua dragging him away before fists were thrown.

Lexaeus just resumed walking, while Aqua scowled Zexion.

She informed him that Lexaeus was the star player in their school's football team. Not to mention, the golden boy of the school. His dad was the best mechanic in town, not to mention he did all this charity work with the church and around town. Lexaeus was the favorite child in town, and nobody got in his way unless they wanted to get hurt. Not by Lexaeus, of course, but the town would do something about him.

"I'm not afraid of him," said Zexion. "I can take him."

"Whatever," laughed Aqua. "He is a million times your size. He could crush you in a heartbeat if he wanted to."

* * *

Lexaeus was thrown off by his second, random encounter with Zexion. He still couldn't understand why the kid was so hell-bent on going after him everytime they saw each other. It made Lexaeus wonder what it was that he did to the kid. There wasn't a damn thing he did to him, but it made him wonder if somebody else did something to him and Zexion was taking that aggression out on him.

It was odd for him to admit this, but Lexaeus found Zexion to be very interesting. Everyone in town was afraid of him except for Zexion. There was so much hostility that the Californian had towards him that it made Lexaeus think that either Zexion really hated him or he was in love with him. The second thought made him grin a bit as his closet case brain began to spin with the possibilities.

There was no way that Lexaeus Bourne was going to tell anybody that he was in the closet. Coming out would lead to his downfall if he did so at this point. It was a well-known fact that his father and the priest of this school were both homophobic. If Lexaeus came out then there would be hell to pay. He'd be lucky if he was sent to one of those straight camps. His father was just as big as him, and would probably kill him if he discovered that his oldest son was a fag.

That word and thought brought chills to Lexaeus was walked into his history class, walking to the back to where he sat.

He tried to rid himself of such thoughts by thinking of hot cute Zexion looked when he was pissed, which brought a smile to his face.

* * *

The brothers came home and threw themselves on the couch without showing any signs of life.

Today had been a much longer day then either once anticipated. Zexion was slammed with buckets of homework since he missed two weeks of school. New Jersey started their school year earlier then California did, which explained the homework. Terra was exhausted from fighting to get a class schedule that made some sense then finding all those books that fit the appropriate professor's needs. He would go grab some school supplies tomorrow since Zexion had to get a few things for himself as well.

Silence filled the room until the front door flew open with Sora running into the house with another boy following behind him. They were both just so loud that it gave Zexion a massive headache. Aerith entered the house as well, walking towards the kitchen to find something to make for dinner.

Terra got a good look at Sora's friend, seeing that the kid had oddly silver hair. The boy also had large, teal colored eyes that could catch anyone's attention. Sora's friend managed to knock Sora to the ground as they began to play wrestle, rather loudly.

"Ouch! Riku!" shouted Sora as he pushed his friend off him. He pushed Riku again, which made his friend laugh at the brunet. Sora stuck his tongue at him before calling him a meanie when he saw Terra and Zexion. "Hey guys! This is my boyfriend, Riku! Riku, these are my cool cousins, Terra and Zexion!"

Both the brothers nearly fell off the couch in shock of what Sora just said. Actually, Zexion did roll off the couch and hit his head on the ground, while Terra just stumbles around a bit. He was a lot more graceful then Zexion was and didn't like to be as much of a drama queen as him.

"Boyfriend!" shouted the brothers.

Sora nodded his head, slowly, not seeing what was wrong with that. "Yeah," he told his cousins. "Riku's my friend and he's a boy so he's my boyfriend. I also have a friend who is a girl so she's my girlfriend! Her name is Kairi."

Terra was doubling over in laughter as he saw his aunt walking in from the kitchen. The young man raised his hands up as he signaled to her that he was innocent. "Yeah, I had nothing to do with this," he said, smiling. "This is your son's logic. I haven't been around long enough to corrupt him."

Aerith just shook her head and laughed as she returned to the kitchen.

Zexion picked his head up from the ground, rubbing his head. That fall he took really hurt and he just knew there was going to be a bruise on his head later. Terra started to poke fun of his brother next, mocking him for falling like that. Zexion just took advantage of Terra's exposed arms and pinched the skin as hard as he could.

"Your cousins are really weird," said Riku.

"Yeah, but they're cool," said Sora. "Wanna go play with my Power Rangers?"

"Sure!" Riku said, excitedly.

The boys ran up the stairs, while Terra and Zexion continued to fight with one another.


	3. Hey, Soul Sister

Author's Note: HELLO EVERYBODY! Sorry it took so long to update the chapter, but I really wanted to finish writing out Bullet for my Soul that way I could dedicate my focus onto this lovely story. Alright, so I have a total of 15 chapters planned out for this story. I know, kinda short, but I guarantee things will be good and they'll be fairly lenghty chapters. Here is the newest chapter! I hope you guys like it. It gets kinda graphic so you might want to scrowl away if you get squismish! Read and review!

"**Hey, Soul Sister" by Train:**

**Hey, hey, hey**

**Your lipstick stains  
****on the front lobe of my left side brains  
I knew I wouldn't forget you, and so I went,  
and let you blow my mind**

* * *

A few more chaotic days passed for the Hewley brothers as they slowly got used to their new lives in Alpha. The small town was still a living nightmare for them, but it was slowly getting to be a little more tolerable for them. Zack enjoyed seeing his nephews adjusting to the quite life of Alpha, Aerith was just glad they weren't tarring things apart, and Sora was ecstatic to constantly being able to hang out with his cousins.

It was Friday evening when Zexion found himself being dragged to a diner by his "friend" Aqua, barely having time to change out of that ridiculous uniform. She was one of the few people in the town that he could tolerate. In fact, she was the only person who seemed almost like a kindred spirit to him, and didn't remind him of how much he totally hated small town life. At least she had the urge to leave this place to make something of herself in New York, which was still a trip that she promised to take him on.

Zexion gave a heavy sigh as he looked at the vintage diner, wondering if this place always looked like this or if it was something that the owner recently did. The diner had a fifties feel to it, reminding him of the soda pop shops that he seen in old movies. There was an actual restaurant on Hollywood Boulevard that he remembered going to a few years ago that also looked like the place. Everything was red and white with old style radios, there was even a red convertible that was fixed into a large table for special guests only.

"This place is actually, dare I say it, cool," said Zexion. "Who in this town is creative enough to pull something like this off?"

"Cloud Strife!" said Aqua. "He grew up here, oddly enough, and he took over the family diner after his dad passed away. The place wasn't doing so well, but being the genius that he is, Cloud was able to fix the place up into this. He has a degree in interior design and graphic design so he was easily able to design the place. He had plenty of cash saved up and there was also his parents' insurance that he used to fix the place."

A fairly, tall blond passed by them with an empty tray in his hands. He spun back around to face Aqua and Zexion, both could see his wild spikes and rather plain appearance. "And I've been a smashing hit since. Thank you for telling the kid my life story, Aqua," said the young man. "Now, I'm assuming that you'll want your usual chocolate shake and fries."

Aqua nodded her head as Zexion could only guess that this was the Cloud that she was talking about. She pulled Zexion by his arm so she could introduce him to the owner of the fine establishment. "You're awesome, Cloud!" she said, cheerfully. "By the way, this is my friend, Zexion. He just moved her from San Francisco with his brother; they're living with Zack and Aerith."

"So you're the trouble making nephew I heard so much about," said Cloud. "Your aunt and I went to high school together."

"Of course you did," said Zexion. "So I'm assuming she told you to keep an eye out for us and report us to the cops even if we step a toe out of line."

Cloud started to agree as he went over to the counter to drop the tray off. The other two followed him there as he refilled one of the local's cups of coffee. "You know damn right she did," said the diner's owner, "but I'm more like your Uncle Zack. I'm willing to give you a chance until you fuck up…bad. So as of now, I really don't give a fuck what you do. Just make sure what you're doing isn't a felony and keep your trouble out of my diner then we can be best friends."

"Hmm," said Zexion, "I think I'm starting to like this guy. Now let's see if his food is any good. I'll take what Aqua's having."

"Don't question my food, kid," warned Cloud. "I make the best food in town so unless you want spit and rat droppings in your food then I suggest you hold your tongue."

Zexion took the threat seriously as he quieted himself, while Cloud went to the kitchen to get their orders. Aqua could only laugh at Zexion as she tried to convince him that Cloud was more bark than bite. Still though, Zexion didn't' want to risk it in the off chance that he really did rub the owner the wrong way.

After a few minutes, Cloud returned from the kitchen with their shakes and fries. He dropped them off on the counter before yelling through the window that led to the kitchen. "Harris, get back to work or I'm docking you an hour of pay!" warned the blond. "I leave the kitchen for five seconds and you're already sitting on your fat ass."

"Sorry boss," hollered a rough-voiced man.

Cloud rolled his eyes as he turned to his two customers. "This happens every day," he said, sadly. "If the dumbass didn't have two kids and a crazy ex-wife, I would've kicked out ages ago, but I pity the poor bastard."

"You're a good man, Mr. Strife," said Zexion, "and you have damn good French fries."

"Just call me Cloud, kid," he told him as his phone started to go off. "Excuse me, I have to take this."

Aqua and Zexion waved him off before returning to the plate of fries between them, dipping them into their shakes as well.

* * *

Cloud left the diner to enter his flat above his business. He didn't want to risk anyone over hearing this conversation with him in his office. He already knew who it was that was calling him without even looking at his caller ID. So quickly he ran up the stairs, answering his phone as he entered his flat.

"Hello master," he already felt sick by letting those words out from his lips.

"Hello pet," said a dark voice. "Don't forget that I'm coming home today from my long trip. I've missed you so much, Cloud. It has been so long since we've last been together. I hope you'll be ready to celebrate our reunion."

Cloud felt a sickening chill run down his spine as he leaned against the wall for support. Oh how he regretted ever meeting this sick bastard, turning to his window just when a plane passed by. "I am ready, master," he said, softly. "I already have someone else running the diner for the next two days."

"You'll need more time to recover than that," said the voice. "Unless, you plan on walking around the diner with a limp."

"I'll be fine," he almost whispered. "It doesn't hurt so much anymore when you're fucking me like crazy."

"Glad you're starting to enjoy it, Cloud," the voice said, sensuously. Cloud hated the way that the bastard said his name. Every time his name came from his mouth, it sounded like he was pleasuring himself while saying it. "I should be home at nine. Have a bottle of wine ready for when I get home."

"I will, master," said Cloud. "Goodbye."

"Bye Cloud."

Cloud hung up on his psychotically, abusive boyfriend and dropped the phone on the ground. He could already feel his breathing getting heavier by the second as the mere thought of Sephiroth coming home made his entire body tremble. He still couldn't believe that he allowed Sephiroth into his home only a year before and now he would never leave him. Sephiroth had too much control over Cloud and wouldn't dare to release him from the iron hold he had on him.

It was like being trapped in a prison cell, just waiting until the day he could finally get the chair. Everytime Sephiroth would leave; Cloud felt relieved that no matter how short of a time that he was finally free from the monster. The nightmare was over for a little while, but it would soon return when Sephiroth came back to his home. Then the abuse, torture, and mind games would resume until Cloud was a broken mess.

Only one year since he became that monster's unwilling slave.

Cloud got up from his spot on the floor and went over to get his phone. He caught sight of his reflection, amazed that there were no tears this time. He was really starting to get used to the pain, his body was slowly numbing itself for Sephiroth's eventual return.

Not wanting to let Sephiroth ruin everything like he did, Cloud went towards the window to take a look at the town. Whenever he was outside, he would be safe; the town would be his sanctuary from the monster. Sephiroth was a master at keeping appearances. He wouldn't allow a soul to know the things he did to Cloud unless he wished it.

When Cloud looked out his window, he saw Squall walking down the street with his fiancé, Rinoa. He was amazed that somebody as good and brave as Squall would ever marry somebody as horribly, selfish as Rinoa Heartily. She was only using him; she didn't love him, not like Cloud did.

Ever since Cloud first met Squall, two years ago, he had a pathetic crush on him. For two years, Cloud wished he could've mustered up the courage to talk to Squall. But it took only a year for him to blow any chances he could've had with him. Squall got engaged to Rinoa, and only a few months later that was when Cloud found himself in Sephiroth's "care".

"Damn me," whispered Cloud. "Damn him too."

Cloud continued to stare out the window as he noticed something that gave him a small semblance of hope, Squall looked miserable with Rinoa holding onto his arm.

Maybe there was a chance for him yet, if only he could be free of Sephiroth.

* * *

His arm felt like it was being pulled out of its socket by the woman he was being forced into marrying against his will. He knew for a fact his rights, being a former soldier of this country that he didn't have to marry this God awful woman. However, their marriage was going to continue despite all of his protests. He was doomed to a like with her and there was nothing he could do to end it.

Squall Leonhart was stuck in a bind, forced into marrying a woman he didn't love. In fact, he didn't really believe in love nor did he feel that way about anyone. There were people that he liked and cared for, but he never had that someone he could say that he loved. Rinoa Heartily was at the very bottom of the list of people he ever cared for.

He despised her very existence. He wished he could just push her into the incoming traffic and be rid of her for the rest of his days. But it was too bright outside and there would be too many witnesses to the murder. What he needed to do was be a lot sneakier then that. He needed to have her want to leave him. He had to make him unappealing to her in every aspect of the word so that she wouldn't want to marry him.

How would he do that though?

Now there lied the problem.

"Can you believe it, Squally?" said Rinoa. "There are only a few more months until we're husband and wife! I can't wait! Aren't you excited?"

"Can't you tell by the smile on my face?" he said, sarcastically.

Rinoa seemed to ignore that as she proceeded to drag him into the wedding planner's office. If there was one thing he hated more than Rinoa it was the pushy wedding planner. She was only fueling the fires that Squall was trying so hard to put out. She was the one that was pushing Rinoa to be patient with him, to give him time to get used to the idea of being married.

Despite her streak of insanity, Rinoa was a patient woman. Under normal circumstances, Squall would've found that an appealing quality had it been anyone but Rinoa. If only his family weren't pushing this wedding to ungodly limits. Had Squall never announced his bisexuality then his parents would've never forced this union.

They didn't accept his heathen ways and threatened to expose him while he was in the service unless he agreed to marry Rinoa. Now that he was out of the military, he didn't need to fear being discharged. However, he would lose his job since he worked for his dad's construction company and there weren't many job opportunities on the east coast thanks to the recession.

Squall bit down on his lips, regretting what his life was turning into as Rinoa pulled him to the wedding planner's office.

* * *

Sweet freedom was taken away from Zexion once he came back home from the diner that night. What was supposed to be a relaxing Friday night with his laptop, a good book, and a bowl of ice cream turned into a living nightmare. When he got home, his aunt told him that he would be watching Sora that night, while her and Zack went out for a dinner party. That didn't seem so bad at first since Sora worshipped the ground he walked upon.

However, then he found out that Sora invited Riku over for a sleepover, and there lied his problems.

Two, hyperactive kids ran around in circles in the living room and shot each other with their toy guns. Zexion had the TV on at full blast on "Wizards of Waverly Place" with silent prayers going to whatever God was out there that the kids would sit down and shut up. Apparently, God wasn't on his side that night as the kids only got louder and louder, despite the argument going on between Justin and Alex.

"I'm going to kill myself," said Zexion. "I'm going to kill myself. Terra, I'm going to kill you when you get home! You left me alone with these little fuckers!"

"He said a bad word!" Riku said as he stopped chasing Sora around the living room. "Your cousin has a potty mouth!"

"Zexion has a potty mouth!" sang Sora. "I'm telling mommy and daddy."

Zexion jumped from his seat on the sofa, grabbing both of the boys by their scrawny arms. The look of fear was evident on the boys' faces, fearing that Zexion was going to kill them. He dragged them both out of the living room and into the kitchen where all the sharp knives were.

Sora and Riku gulped as they began to cry, trying to get away from the surprisingly strong grip that Zexion had on them. Zexion wasn't about to let them go though, not after they drove him to the very brink of insanity. He made them both sit down on the tile floor before standing over them like giant, well, compared to the boys' standards.

"Here's what's going to happen," said Zexion. "The both of you will behave, sit down, and watch TV otherwise I'm going to make you both very miserable little boys. Am I understood?"

The boys turned to each other before looking back at Zexion. "What does miserable mean?" they asked the elder boy.

Zexion just sighed as he closed his eyes, shaking his head at the children's poor education. "Just behave or I'll kick your butts," he said, kid-sizing his vocabulary.

"Okay Zexion," the boy said as they ran off to watch Zack and Cody.

Zexion gave a sigh of relief as he returned to the living room with the boys finally behaving for the first time of the night.

* * *

It was fairly late when he finally got off work for the day. Squall wasn't around the pit so what should've been an easy day turned into a total nightmare for the construction workers. A few things went wrong that day, which led to them staying an extra three hours to make up for the damage done. It was already nine when Terra finally left the pit to go back home.

Driving down the road in his baby, he passed by the park when he caught sight of something interesting. He turned the car back around and parked at the near empty lot. He practically jumped out of the car when he caught sight of his angel sitting there alone.

Like a bat out of Hell, he went running towards Ventus with energy that he knew that he didn't have. He ran towards him anyways because he didn't want to miss out on this chance to speak with his angel.

Ventus looked up just in time to see Terra running towards him like a madman. Fear clenched hold of his chest as he prepared to run away from the young man. However, his body refused to move an inch as he simply sat there, still wearing his school uniform.

"Hi there," Terra said, smiling at him. "I'm Terra Hewley."

"Ventus Hart," whispered the blond. "Why are you here?"

Terra simply shrugged his shoulders as he sat his exhausted body beside him. He looked up to the starry sky, surprised that he could see so many stars in the sky. "I don't know," he said, smiling at Ventus. "I just got off from work and saw you all alone. I figured you could use someone looking out for you because you don't look like the type who can hold his own in a fight."

Ventus tried not to let Terra know just how right he was. He did such a fighting, which was partly why Vanitas held so much control over him. "I can handle things by myself," he said, softly. "I don't need you to pretend like you care."

"What if I'm not pretending?" Terra came back with. "What if I actually do care?"

It took only two sentences to get to Ventus's heart. The blond had a blush growing on his sweet face as he turned to face Terra who just sat there with that smile on his face. A smile began to grow on Ventus's face as he felt something he never thought he would've felt before. It was then heard understood what Roxas was talking about everytime he talked about his girlfriend.

Love was something that Ventus never believed in, but Terra seemed too warm and caring, something he was a stranger too.

"I have to go," Ventus said, jumping up from the bench. "I need to get home before my parents worry about me."

"I could drop you off," Terra offered.

Ventus shook his head, fearing that he wasted too much time at the park already. He couldn't afford Vanitas to get home before he did that would only be a disaster. "No, I'll be fine," he said, still finding himself smiling at Terra. "It was nice meeting you, Terra. Goodbye."

"Goodbye Ventus," Terra said, smiling back.

They both continued to smile as they parted ways with Ventus being confused and Terra walking on sunshine.

* * *

He thanked his luck that he made it home before Vanitas did.

Ventus slid in through the basement door then proceeded to make sure that everything was locked up so that only someone with a key could get in. And that somebody would be Vanitas, who had the only spare key to unlock the doors from the outside. Ventus, of course, had his own for emergency purposes that he almost never used.

Music started to play as Ventus stripped down to nothing, throwing his clothes into the bottom of the basket. He grabbed a can of Axe that Vanitas liked and sprayed himself with it. He threw his body on the bed, hiding himself under the covers as he prepared himself for Vanitas's eventual arrival. He tried to calm down once he heard the lock clicking before a set of footsteps came towards the bedroom door.

Vanitas stepped in with Ventus half-exposed on the bed. A dark smile crept up Vanitas's face as he slowly stripped off the track jacket he was wearing, revealing that he wasn't wearing a shirt underneath it. He ran his hands through his spiky, black hair to show off his toned arms with tufts of armpit hair sticking out as he approached Ventus on the bed.

"Do you want me to fuck you?" Vanitas asked, grabbing onto Ventus's hair. He pulled the rich, blond hair back as he forced a startled cry out of Ventus's sweet lips. Vanitas bit at the pouty lip before running his lips against the soft skin. "Do you want me to fuck you until you can stand straight?"

"Yes," Ventus cried, playing his role in this sick game.

A laugh escaped Vanitas's lips as he took hold of Ventus's naked body, pressing it against his half nude one. Ventus had his arms wrapped around his brother's neck as Vanitas slowly began to unbuckle his jeans. Already, Ventus could feel that Vanitas was fully erect and ready to go, while he was too scared to even react to Vanitas's touch.

He just continued to play his part as he allowed Vanitas to violate his insides. Cold fingers entered his tight entrance, forcing the boy to cry out in slight pain. At this point, he should've been used to it, but remarkably he was still as tight as he was the first time. That was something Vanitas never could get enough of this, while he plowed away at Ventus's ass.

Vanitas pushed his jeans down and tossed them aside as he pinned Ventus down on his back with his full weight. He grabbed onto his younger brother's arms, keeping them above his head as he began a vicious assault of his neck. Ventus's entire body tensed up as Vanitas ordered him to wrap his legs around him. His brother's hard erection slid through in the process and rubbed against his tight heat.

Ventus gave out a soft cry as his brother penetrated him, still holding his arms above his head. It wasn't until that he was fully inside did Vanitas release him. Ventus tangled his fists around on the sheets as he gave pathetic cries that he buried into the pillows beneath him. Vanitas wasted no time in slamming him all the way in and pulling back out just to repeat the process. This would go on for the rest of the night with Vanitas only stopping to give himself a chance to replenish himself for the next round. It mattered not if Ventus was exhausted, thirsty, or exhausted. All that mattered was that Vanitas's sick, sexual desires were satisfied by his younger brother's tight ass.

Vanitas had all the control over him and Ventus had nothing as tears began to run down his face, while the rape continued throughout the night.

* * *

Spending your Friday night on a chat room wasn't exactly the coolest thing in the world to do. Especially, if it was a 200 pounds football player, sitting in his bedroom with his laptop sitting on his lap. Lexaeus had his shirt off with the glare of the computer screen reflecting off his tan muscles. For the first time in three weeks, he didn't have a game to play so he was free to relax for once.

With his parents out of the house, he decided to get on a gay chat room to talk with other kids like him. He signed in with the screen name "JockHunk92" to communicate with other gay teens who under normal circumstances he couldn't talk to. His crazy, homophobic father would have a fit if he even knew he had a civilized conversation with a gay guy.

Taking advantage of the security that he had, Lexaeus talked to strangers through the internet. He was currently talking to some kid from California who recently moved to Jersey. Lexaeus didn't want to pry too much on where in Jersey the kid lived. He didn't want to risk running into the kid in public.

A smile formed on Lexaeus's face as he had a civilized conversation with another guy.

"I like talking to you," Lexaeus said, while keying it in. "You should send me an e-mail sometime, if that's not being too forward. You actually seem to understand me. I know you hate it here in Jersey and are desperate to leave. I feel trapped like there's no hope for me escaping. I'm glad to meet someone who thinks like I do."

He pressed send and waited for the other guy to respond.

* * *

"I'm glad to meet someone who thinks like I do," Zexion said, reading the message that came on the screen of his laptop.

Zexion was lounging around in the basement, trying to get away from everybody so he could have a conversation with somebody who wasn't blood. He had finally managed to put Sora and Riku to bed before his aunt and uncle got home from the party. The good thing was that he got forty bucks out of it so that was going to pay for his trip to New York. Terra got home not long after them, floating on Cloud 9 before crashing out on his bed.

The lilac haired boy thought of something to say that would work for the situation.

"We should talk more often," Zexion said as he typed it into the computer. "Here's my e-mail, please refrain yourself from sending nude pics of yourself."

Zexion started to laugh at the response, trying to think of a good comeback.

* * *

The lock on the front door was unlocked by the key on the other end. Cloud waited on the couch with an open bottle of Sephiroth's wine in his hands. He kept cool and detached himself from his emotions as the door opened with the long, silver haired man entering his home. Cloud felt his entire body tense up at once as he saw Sephiroth waltz in, slamming the door shut, and dropping his bags on the floor.

Sephiroth's tight body was covered in the leather outfit he wore, showing off his dominating physique. Cloud kept his cool though as he simply raised the bottle up, while tilting his head to show off more of his neck. This formed a smile on Sephiroth's lips as he slowly made his way over towards Cloud. Sephiroth hooked his arm around the blond's waist, pulling him into a tight embrace.

"You won't believe how much I missed you, Cloud," Sephiroth purred into his ear. "I've thought about fucking you nonstop since I left the house."

"Well, you're home now," Cloud said, trying to play along with the game. "Let's have a drink to celebrate your return."

Sephiroth kept his toothy grin as he took the bottle from Cloud's hand. He took a long swig, letting the liquid run down to refresh his parched throat. He gave Cloud a drink once he was done before placing it on the table. Cloud braced his body mind and body for the worst as Sephiroth stripped him down to nothing so he could have his way with him.

And so it would begin, Cloud allowed Sephiroth to have him, pretending to enjoy the pain that was inflicted upon him.


	4. I Like It

Author's Note: Because I love you all so much, here is another update! Just for your information, I plan on finishing NB sometime in February, possibly sooner if I can. Anyways, read and review as always! And thanks to everyone who has been reviewing and favoriting already. :]

"**I Like It" by Enrique Iglesias & Pitbull: **

**One love, one love**

**Go go Dj go go go Dj go go go Dj club is on fire****  
****Ya'll Know what time it is, we go set it off tonight, just go set the club on fire, just go****  
****Enrique! Holla at them**

**

* * *

**

Physics was a total bore for Zexion at this point since he already knew everything that the teacher was going to teach him. It was all rather tedious for him to continue to sit around here, but since the damn bastard took attendance there was no chance of him skipping. One step out of line and he would have to do deal with his uncle and aunt.

Zexion numbed the pain by drawing away the boring lectures or reading something that actually interest him. Physics wasn't his thing, he might be good at it, but he wasn't big on being all mathematical. He'd much rather be working on something psychological or philosophical. Anything that actually required real thought and reasoning fascinated him opposed to mathematical equations.

"Alright class," said Mr. Vexen. "The project handouts I gave to you yesterday are due next week. So I'm going to assign each of you a partner to help make it easier on you."

Vexen began to shoot names off from the roster, randomly partnering everybody up to somebody. It took forever for Zexion's name to get called off this time, but he ended up being up with Ventus Hart. Zexion picked his head up to see the blond headed kid sitting beside him at the four person table, thanking his stars that he got paired with Ventus.

The reason why was that most of the kids in the class were idiots. Completely mindless without a thought in their tiny heads. Now, Ventus actually tried in class and put an effort into his work so that made him a useful partner to have. He would keep up with his work and wouldn't leave Zexion completely ass out.

Not long after Vexen paired everybody off, the bell rang dismissing them.

Zexion quickly got his things together and went out of the room since Ventus practically flew out of the room. He still couldn't understand how something so tiny could run off like that. Not even he could do that, but Ventus was like a pro at it.

So when Zexion managed to catch up to Ventus, he snatched the other boy by the wrist to get his attention. Ventus looked like he had jumped out of his skin and that prompted Zexion to apologize for scaring him like that. Ventus appeared to be severally freaked out, which Zexion just couldn't seem to understand why. It wasn't that startling, at least to him it wasn't.

"We need to work on this project and get it over with as soon as possible," said Zexion.

"Okay," Ventus said, meekly. He clung onto his backpack as he followed Zexion down the hall. Things felt a little more awkward for him now that he knew Zexion was Terra's brother. It almost made him wonder if Terra was using him to spy on him, making Ven wonder why Zexion was so kind to him sometimes. "Can we do it at your house? My place is a bit of a mess."

"That works for me," said Zexion. "Let's get to work on it after school today."

"That's fine," Ven said, softly.

As they continued to walk down the hall, Aqua appeared out of nowhere as she flagged them down. They were both caught off guard when she practically threw herself at them, while wrapping her arms around their necks. Of course, Aqua needed to be as dramatic as possible as she gave a dramatic sigh about how hard it was to find them.

"So I'm having a party tonight and I think you should both come!" she said, smiling. "It'll be lots of fun, plenty of cute guys, and good food plus it'll be parents free."

"I don't feel like getting thrown into prison for another out-of-control party," said Zexion. "I'm afraid I must decline."

"It'll be alcohol and drug free," explained Aqua. "And you're going, Zexion, even if I have to pull you by your pretty hair."

"Fine, bitch face," Zexion mumbled as he went off to class.

Ven knew that he couldn't say anything since Aqua would make him go no matter what.

* * *

The pit was exhausting him to the point of no return.

Terra was just clocking out for his lunch break, ending his long ass day for about an hour. Since it was Friday and he didn't have class, he had to work extra hours at the pit. They were building up this new plaza, which was taking them a ridiculously long time due to all the issues with the equipment delivery. Half the parts they needed weren't being delivered on time so they were already a month behind of their estimated time.

He mostly worked with building up the structure, making sure that everyone was screwed into place. He also got to work with some of the cooler toys, but it still was exhausting work that he never wanted to do. The original goal was to be a rockstar, but since he got to Jersey he hasn't had a chance to focus on his music.

Not even an hour just to strum a few chords on his guitar.

"I can't fucking wait until I can quit this lousy fucking job," he mumbled off to himself.

The other guys working with him just started to laugh. They told Terra to toughen up and just deal with it. Terra wanted to tell them off, but figured it wouldn't be a good idea to piss off half the guys he was working with.

Terra went into the office to tell Squall that he was going to take off. He was prevented from leaving though since Squall wanted to have a quick talk with him. Terra quickly regretted ever coming into the office as he went over to the desk that Squall was hanging out by.

"You're coming to lunch with me," Squall said, simply, dispelling Terra's fears. "My treat."

"What?" Terra asked, shocked by Squall.

"You've been doing such a good job lately that I figured you deserve it," said Squall. "Granted, it's pretty obvious that you hate it here and always complain, but at least you pull your own weight and do your part."

"Thanks," Terra said, slowly. "So…when can I quit?"

"After we're done with the job," said Squall. "So not until December just before it gets ridiculously cold, California Boy."

"Damn," Terra mumbled, already fearing the snow.

Squall laughed as he dragged Terra out of the office to take him out to eat.

Squall took Terra to lunch at the Ragin' 50 diner that was owned by one Cloud Strife. Squall enjoyed coming here to lunch since it was a comfortable atmosphere and Cloud always made the best burgers in town. He also liked the air that Cloud had around him, it always made Squall feel calm and at ease with himself no matter how crazy work had gotten.

Terra was mindlessly staring at the menu, trying to decide what to eat that day. He scanned through every item there until he decided to go with a burger as well. He was already smacking his lips at the bacon cheeseburger that he just ordered from their blond headed waiter. Squall went for the egg cheeseburger, which seemed equally tempting.

The guy said that his name was Demyx, and gave the usual introduction. His hair was the odd love child of a Mohawk and a mullet, which actually seemed fairly cool in Terra's eyes. He was pretty thin too kinda like Ventus was, but way taller than his little angel though. Demyx even dressed in a way that was similar to Ven, very plain looking, not wanting to grab too much attention to himself.

"I'll get your burgers right away," said Demyx before he ran off to place their orders.

Squall and Terra sat there, silently, rarely speaking a word to each other.

Squall had turned his head to the right after hearing some heavy footsteps coming down the set of stairs off to the off-limits section. Cloud came down the stairs wearing track shorts and a t-shirt that was very off from his usual appearance. Cloud would never enter the work place dressed so informally, but here he was dressed like he was going for a jog.

That's when he noticed the slight limp that Cloud had, which made Squall think that he must've hurt himself so that explained why he walked the way he did. That didn't bother him so much anymore as he caught a glimpse of Cloud going to the cash register to check the money. Cloud quickly ran through the numbers and checked to make sure that everything was in order from another manager before returning to the stairs. Apparently, Cloud wasn't working today or at least he just wasn't really on duty.

What surprised Cloud though was the man waiting by the stairs. He was so far off into the shadows that Squall could barely see this man. He did see that the silver-haired man didn't have a shirt on and wore only a pair of jeans to cover him. Squall's eyes began to flare once he saw the man grab onto Cloud, pulling him into a tight embrace, and forced his tongue halfway down the blond's throat.

Cloud didn't seem to enjoy this at all or at least he didn't show any response to the kiss.

Squall felt his fists tightening from underneath the table for no reason at all. Anger started to boil up inside of him as he continued to watch this make-out session for a good two minutes before they finally pulled away. Cloud was dragged upstairs by this unknown man, which made Squall see where that limp came from now. He could really see that something was wrong by seeing how miserable Cloud looked and the sinister smirk growing on the man's lips.

He was prevented from reading any further into the situation when a napkin went flying passed his eyes.

"You gonna tell me what was so fascinating, boss man?" said Terra. "You were spaced out for a good five minutes."

Squall shook his head as he returned his attention to his employee. "No, sorry about that," he said, calmly. "My mind just seemed to wander off on me."

"Alright," said Terra. "So…tell me about this Rinoa girl you're supposed to marry."

A heavy sigh escaped his throat as he remembered just how much Rinoa made him miserable, but decided to keep that part to himself.

Lucky for him though that he didn't have to go into detail thanks to the arrival of their food.

* * *

Before they had to leave for Aqua's party, Zexion and Ventus decided it would probably be best to get as much work done on their project as possible. Ven explained how sometimes Aqua's party could get a little out of control, but that rarely happened. Zexion knew that if anything went wrong then he needed to get out of their as soon as possible. He wasn't looking forward to spending another night in a police station cell.

As the boys tried to work out on their equations, Sora was running around the living room with his toy guns. Sora kept trying to shoot at them to get their attention, but Zexion warned Sora that he would kick his butt if he didn't stop. The boy still bore the "emotional scars" from the other night so he didn't want to provoke Zexion's bad side.

Ven couldn't help but to smile at how much Sora seemed to admire Zexion, despite the obvious fear he put in him to keep the brunet to behave.

"Go to your room, Sora," Zexion said. "Ven and I are trying to get our homework done."

"Only if you promise to play with me all day tomorrow!" said Sora.

"Deal, now go to your room."

Sora said his goodbyes to Ven before running up the stairs to his room. Just as Sora shut his door, the front door opened up with a deep voice announcing that he was home. Zexion yelled at Terra that they were in the living room, which alarmed Ven as he realized that Terra was here now. Ven tried to keep it not so obvious that he was here by hiding behind the collar of his shirt, but that failed miserably.

Terra came waltzing into the room with a goofy smile on his face before he noticed that Ven was in his home. That goofy grin turned into a bright smile as he went over to the sofa to greet his brother and his angel. "Hi Ventus," said Terra. "It's really nice to see you again."

"Nice to see you too, Terra," Ven said, softly.

Zexion easily picked up the awkward tension that was slowly entering the air. He smelt it with ease as he saw the blush forming on Ven's face and the goofy grin on Terra's face. Oh, it was painfully obvious to him just what was going on here. Anyone with half a brain could smell the pheromones that were wafting off his brother and science partner.

"Hey Ven," Zexion said, interrupting the mindless stare. "Didn't you say you have to call your brother about the party?"

"Shit!" squeaked Ven. "I forgot. I need to call him now to let him now I'm going."

Ventus quickly ran off the couch with his cell phone in hand. Once Zexion heard Ven talking in the other room, he quickly turned back to his brother. Terra was still blissfully staring over at the direction that Ven ran off too, making it all the more obvious just what was going on in that perverse brain of his.

Zexion leaned up from the sofa to smack his brother in the back of the head. That's when he felt all the sweat that built up there and went ew before Terra turned back to smack him back. "You're drooling everywhere," Zexion said as he dodged another blow. "Just make it any more obvious that you want to fuck Ven where he's standing."

"I don't want to fuck Ven," Terra said, trying to defend himself to his brother. "I don't even know the kid."

"Remember, he is a kid," said Zexion. "And just stop drooling when you look at him. I need to keep him as my partner for the project and buddy for Aqua's party."

"Party?" Terra said, shrugging out of his sweaty shirt. "And you said Ven is going to be there with you? Zex, you have to take me with you."

"Only if you let me drive your car," Zexion said, returning to the questions on the handout.

"Deal!" Terra said without hesitation as he ran to the basement to get cleaned up.

Zexion had mischievous smile on his face, knowing that he so won that round as Ven returned to say his brother was fine with it. Zexion shared that Terra would be going with them, which made the blond blush before saying that was fine. It was so obvious to Zexion that Ven liked his brother, but for some reason was holding it all back. Unlike his brother who was almost ready to pounce the boy where he stood.

Oh how fun this would be, thought Zexion.

* * *

It was remarkable just how huge Aqua's house was and that it could house the entire teenage population of town. The three-story, Victorian house looked like something out an architecture magazine that made your house look like crap. When Terra and Zexion got there, they felt like every teenager was there, which probably wasn't too far from the truth. Ven had to explain to them that it was like this a lot. Aqua always threw the best parties so she was pretty famous to the under 18 crowd, and was sort of thought of as the party goddess.

Terra looked around the place, feeling like a total creeper for being around all these high school kids. He was hoping that there was at least someone who was eighteen that way he didn't look like a total pedophile in a sea of fifteen, sixteen, and seventeen year olds. He had gotten dressed up in a tight, black button up with dark fitted-jeans that showed off his muscles, but didn't overly show him off.

Zexion had gotten dressed in a pair of skinny jeans with a black hoodie and a blue v-neck. It wasn't like he was here to impress anybody so he didn't want to overdo it. Ven ended up borrowing some clothes from Zexion, which included a pair of skinny jeans, a grey t-shirt, and a light green cardigan. Ven looked so cute in Zexion's indie boy clothes that Terra just had to thank his brother for picking out that outfit for him.

Zexion rolled his eyes as he dismissed his brother's comment before Terra had a chance to drag Ven somewhere else. "The kid is doomed," Zexion said, hopelessly about Terra. "My brother is a love struck baboon." He went over to the kitchen to grab something to drink when he found Aqua dancing with a few guys surrounding her. It was obvious that the muscle heads were trying to seduce her, but Aqua was no way putting out for those idiots. Zexion was proud of her as he grabbed a Coke then went to another room.

Unfortunately for Zexion, he just had to run into somebody that he could not stand.

Lexaeus Bourne had just turned from another corner, prompting the two of them to almost bump heads. When Lexaeus first caught sight of Zexion, he wanted to smile, but the furious scowl on the boy's face made his recoil. He actually looked really nice in similar fitted-jeans as Terra with a button up that was splashed with all these different patterns, which Zexion knew had to be an Affliction brand shirt.

"Can you get the fuck out of my way?" growled Zexion.

"Only if you tell me what your problem with me is," Lexaeus said, while crossing his arms over his chest. "Like seriously, why do you constantly feel the need to pull a fight with me everytime we see each other?"

"Because I know your make," Zexion said, simply. "Haven't we had this conversation before?"

"Obviously not because I would've remembered," said Lexaeus.

Zexion rolled his eyes when he felt his phone going off in his tight ass jeans. So he took it out and told Lexaeus to fuck off before going outside to answer it. He left Lexaeus with a dumbfounded look, making the large guy wonder just what was wrong with Zexion's brain.

Meanwhile, Terra dragged Ven into a quitter room just so that they could have a talk.

"Why do you want to talk to me?" said Ven. "I'm not that interesting."

"You are to me," Terra said, obviously flirting.

Ven wasn't so dumb that he didn't catch that. In fact, he was blushing wildly because of it as he drew his legs up to his chest on the small sofa. He felt Terra getting closer to him due to the rising heat that made Ven feel like he had just ran a mile.

Before the flirting could continue, a hand grabbing onto Ven's shoulder forced the boy to go into panic mode.

"Wow, my older brother is actually with someone." Ven looked up to see that it was just Roxas and his best friend, Axel, who nearly gave him a heart attack. Roxas had half of his body leaning over the sofa with his resting on Ven's shoulders. "So who is this old guy?" he asked his brother. "He looks pretty old. Do mom and dad know about him?"

"No," Ven said, pushing his brother off him. "I just met him the other day. He's Zexion's older brother."

"You mean the little punk that's always getting into fights with Lexaeus?" said Axel. "Hmm, you two look nothing alike."

"I look like dad and he looks like mom," Terra said, trying to push them out of the picture so he could get back to being alone with Ven.

Axel seemed to pick up on this, while Roxas was kinda oblivious to it all. The red head ran a hand through his hair, reminding Terra that he was the red headed Devil they saw the other day. "Well, well. I can see when we aren't wanted around," he said, laughing. "Let's go, Rox. This guy here is trying to woo your brother."

"What?" Roxas and Ven said before Roxas was dragged away by Axel.

Terra wanted to kill Axel so badly, even though he didn't know him, as he tried to convince Ven that it was nothing like that.

* * *

"Hello?" Zexion said into his phone as he made it to the front yard.

"Hey there, Zex," said a familiar voice.

If looks could kill across the country then that asshole on the other end would be dead. Zexion clenched onto his phone, tightly, with a strong urge to smash it into pieces. "What do you want, Marluxia?" said the young man. "You already fucked up m life. What else do you want to do to make my life miserable?"

"Oh, calm down, Zex," said this Marluxia. "It's ancient history."

"Asshole!" shouted Zexion. "My brother and I are stuck in Jersey because of you. If you hadn't brought the pot and all that liquor, none of this would've happened."

"It would've happened sooner or later," said Marluxia. "I just wanted to check up on you, but since you wanted to be a little bitch, I'll talk to you another day."

The call ended before Zexion had a chance to respond, which made him hate his ex-boyfriend all the more.

However, before Zexion had the chance to return to the party, some dude ran past him and pushed him out of his way before charging through the front door. Zexion had spat out a few obscenities at the due when he noticed that someone was helping him back on his feet. When he looked back and saw that it was Lexaeus, he simply turned away as he tried not to yell at him due to the compromising position.

In the house, Vanitas Hart rushed into the party after hearing from a friend that his brothers were here. Now, he didn't give a damn what Roxas did, but when it came to Ven then that was a different story. Ventus was his and his alone; he had no right to be here without his permission. So when Vanitas found Ventus in the lounge with Terra sitting beside him, it was safe to assume that sparks would soon be flying and not the good kind.

"Ventus! Roxas!" growled Vanitas, catching both of his brother's attention.

Ven nearly threw himself off the sofa, while Roxas came running into the room with Axel and his girlfriend following. The twins gulped with fear as they saw a fuming Vanitas standing by the doorway and the look of death upon his face. Ven quickly got as far away from Terra as possible, while Roxas just slowly went to his brother.

"What the hell are you doing here?" growled Vanitas.

"We were invited," said Roxas. "Why are you acting like our warden? You're making a scene."

"I don't give a shit," said Vanitas as he grabbed onto Ven's arm. "We're all leaving now. Get your shit and let's go."

Vanitas laid down the law, which made Roxas and Ventus cave in as they followed their psychotic older brother out of the house just as Aqua came in with a few boxes of pizza. Vanitas purposely bumped into her to make her almost drop the boxes, but it was a good thing that she was used to things like that happening. She was pissed that Vanitas was here, but even more pissed of how big of a dick that he was being.

Terra wanted to chase after Ven, but knew that there was no point since he was carried out by his brother.

A bitter growl escaped from Terra's lungs as he got up from the couch and went to get himself a strong drink. He knew that there had to be liquor here so when he made it to the room that housed the liquor; he was surprised to see the waiter from the diner there. Demyx was standing beside a black haired guy with silver streaks dyed into his hair, a guy with dreadlocks, and another guy with short blond hair. He turned away from his friends for a second when he noticed Terra was there and a bright smile formed on his face.

A smile that almost reminded him of Ven, which made the gears in Terra's head go off.

* * *

Once again, Ventus found himself scared for his life as Vanitas threw him down on the bed that night. When they got home from the party, Vanitas furiously dismissed Roxas into his room, threatening to tell their parents on them both. Roxas ran off without a sound, leaving Ven alone with their elder brother.

Vanitas pounced on Ven, pinning him down onto the bed with his dark eyes piercing through his very soul. "I saw the way you looked at him," growled Vanitas. "You think you can abandon me for some California punk?"

"How did you know he's from California?" Ven asked before getting smacked across the face.

"I have class with him," Vanitas hissed into his ear. He dragged Ven up from the bed, smacking his brother again so that he would fall onto the mattress. He hit him with a punch into his ribs to be sure that Ven wouldn't put up a fight at all as he stripped him naked. As Vanitas's hands stripped him bare, Ven felt his tears streaming from his eyelids as he looked into the face of evil.

Vanitas was going to make him all the more miserable now and it was all because of Terra.

* * *

"Harder, Terra!" cried Demyx. "Fuck me harder!"

After the incident at the party, Terra managed to convince Demyx into coming home with him and Zexion. Demyx was drunk and horny enough to fall for him easily, while Zexion was just disgusted by his brother's attempt to get any action. As soon as they arrived to the Fair house, Zexion stormed into the house since he didn't want to be around when the action began.

The action began before they even went into the house.

Terra already stripped Demyx of his shirt and pants before making it to the backyard. They entered his bedroom through the door out back, Demyx using his fingers to unbutton Terra's black shirt. With his glorious muscles exposed, Demyx began to worship him with his tongue and teeth as Terra carried him into his room.

They both quickly threw their clothes off to the side before pouncing on one another. Demyx had his body wrapped around Terra with their tongues invading each other's mouths. Terra had both hands on Demyx's ass, pulling the cheeks lightly apart as his fingers began to sneak their way to his hole. Demyx was moaning like a dog in heat as he begged for Terra to fuck him.

And fuck him he did. Terra pushed Demyx onto his hands and knees, while running his lengthy erection down the crack of that smooth ass. Without giving Demyx any time to prepare, Terra just forced his full eight inches inside of him until that ass grazed against his pubic hair. Terra showed no mercy as he fucked Demyx into the bed with the blond moaning uncontrollably.

"Harder, harder," begged Demyx.

Terra continued to comply as he fucked Demyx like a madman, not caring about this blond as he only wished he could be spending the night with his angel instead.

* * *

Since he got back from having dinner with the family, Squall found himself sitting on a chair and looked out to the night sky. He didn't even acknowledge the brothers as they made their return from the party. Nor did he care when he saw Terra and some kid stripping down to their underwear in the backyard.

No, the only thing that was on his mind was one Cloud Strife.

"What is wrong with me?" he asked himself. "I've known Cloud for years now, why am I just now starting to have feelings about him? I never even thought about him in that way. I rarely thought about any man being sexually attractive, but damn Cloud is just so…kind. I'd much rather be with Cloud then Rinoa."

Squall continued to ponder on what he would do, and wondered how things would be like if he was with Cloud instead of Rinoa.


	5. Call Me

Author's Note: WOOOO! Here is another fun filled chapter just for you guys! :] Read and review.

"**Call Me" by Blondie:**

**Colour me your colour, baby****  
****Colour me your car****  
****Colour me your colour, darling****  
****I know who you are****  
****Come up off your colour chart****  
****I know where you're comin' from**

* * *

All Zexion could think about, after Aqua's party, was what the fuck was up with Ven's psycho brother. He had never seen anything more appalling then Vanitas's rude behavior and how he just dragged his brothers out for no reason. At least, there was no apparent reason that Zexion could see to make him react the way he did.

So, the curious one needed to get to the bottom of this mystery before it drove him bonkers. He couldn't stand seeing Terra bumming around the house when he wasn't at school or work, no doubt thinking about what could've been with Ven. He knew that he needed a good plan though to spare his brother's sanity and figure out what was up with Ven though.

Zexion waited until after they turned in their physics work before confronting Ventus down the hall. The lilac haired youth ran down the hallway to grab a hold of the youth's arm so that he would have his undivided attention. This time Ventus didn't jump out of his skin, but he did notice a pain shoot up the boy's being. Zexion caught a quick glimpse of a bruise on his arm, which wasn't there before the party.

Initially dismissing it, Zexion pushed to find out the secret to this mystery.

"Why did your brother drag you out of the house like that?" asked Zexion. "He knew you were coming to Aqua's party, right?"

"No," Ventus mumbled as he forced Zexion to let him go. "I didn't tell him because he doesn't like me going out anywhere. He doesn't like me being by myself."

"Why?" asked Zexion.

That was when Zexion saw a sudden change in the normally cheery Ventus's face. It suddenly darkened as the boy struggled to contain himself from lashing out at him. "That's none of your concern, Zexion," he said, bitterly. Ven remembered his place though and the concern that Zexion had in his voice. He had no reason to yell at him, he rationalized. "Just…just try not to talk to me anymore, and that goes for your brother too. Tell Terra that I'm sorry and he's better off just forgetting about me."

Ventus left it at that as he started to walk away, leaving Zexion in shock in more ways than one.

For starters, Zexion was sure that was the most he ever heard Ven talk since he met him. Second, the look in his face had more than just anger in it, there was fear. Third, Zexion knew that there was something far bigger going on then Ven was willing or able to explain to him. Zexion knew that he had to push his investigation further so there was only one other person out there that he could go to find out more info.

Lucky for him too that she was just turning the corner, while Ventus disappeared from sight.

Aqua looked tired like she hadn't gotten much sleep this weekend. Not like a drunk, party girl tired, but more of that she had to clean the entire house before parents showed up exhausted. "Hey Zexion," she said, trying to sound cheery. "Did you enjoy the party Friday? I'm glad you brought your brother along, he's a total hottie."

"Yeah, it was fine," Zexion said, walking with her to his next class. "Can you explain to me what's up with Ven's brother though? The older one, not Roxas."

"Vanitas," said Aqua. "He's just as vain as his name describes. Well, what can I say about Vanitas other then he's a total psycho, who is severally overprotective of Ventus."

"Roxas too?"

"Nah, he doesn't care for Roxas much," said Aqua. "Ven always gets the short end of the stick back home. He's not as smart or athletic as his brothers so that always made things difficult for him. Him and Roxas are tied to the hip though, at least they used to until they had their big fight, which was when Vanitas started to hang around Ven more. Not sure what happened though, you might want to ask Roxas though. What's up with all these questions though?"

"Well, Vanitas dragged Roxas and Ven from your party, and my brother has a thing for Ven."

"Better warn Terra about Vanitas, he has a bit of a violent temper," was all Aqua said before disappearing down another corner.

More puzzle pieces started to appear in front of Zexion as he just stood in the hallway. Everything seemed to turn back to Ventus's relationship with Vanitas, but that only seemed like the beginning of it. It all made Zexion wonder just how deep the relationship between them went and if Ventus's bruise had anything to do with Vanitas.

Maybe it would be best to just keep Terra away from Ven, at least until Zexion could figure this mystery out.

* * *

Terra escaped from work a little earlier than usual thanks to a test that he needed to study for. Before he went home though, he went over to the diner to get something to eat that wasn't Aerith's cooking. Not that she was a bad cook or anything, but he just couldn't take it anymore and he craved for something different.

So as Terra sat there, still smelling like construction pit with the funk staining him, he felt somebody's eyes on him. Terra raised his head up from the menu since he already decided on what he wanted when he saw Demyx approaching him from the counter. The blond had a cheery smile on his face, which Terra struggled to return back to him.

"The other night was pretty fun," said Demyx.

"Yeah, it was," Terra said, actually not lying about it. Demyx was pretty good in bed.

Demyx handed over a piece of paper to Terra that had a series of numbers on it. "That's my cell," said the blond. "Just call me if you ever want a repeat of Friday night." He just left it at that as he returned to work, while another waiter came in to take his order.

Once Terra gave the guy his order, he found himself staring out the windows for anything to distract him. He regretted sleeping with Demyx only because his heart was yearning for Ventus, who he knew that he could never have. For whatever reason, fate seemed to keep him away from the guy he really wanted. Whether it was because Ven was too young or Terra wasn't ready for anything stable, things seemed to just keep them apart.

He just wished there was something he could do about it.

While staring out to the park, he just happened to see the object of his affections walk passed the diner. Terra's entire outlook on life brightened up for just a brief second as he saw Ventus coming in his direction. Ventus noticed Terra too, a cute blush began to form on his cheeks, and it looked like Ven wanted to wave or something. However, Ven knew that he should continue to keep his distance so he just hurried to get away from Terra.

Terra wanted to race after Ven, but something inside of him told him to wait until he was ready.

He would just have to continue to look at Ven from a distance, hoping that one day the world would finally be ready to give them a chance.

* * *

Needing to pick up some damn book for his English class, Zexion sauntered his way over to the bookstore to get his required reading. The school library had failed him miserably and so did the local library so he had no choice but to buy the thing. It amazed just how easy it was to walk from anywhere in this town, there was almost no need for a car.

Zexion was a few yards away from the local bookstore when he felt his pants starting to vibrate. That meant his phone was going off so he quickly picked it up just in case if it was his aunt or uncle or Terra. "Hello?" he said, trying to sound polite. Maybe if he was really lucky it would be Ven who would give him all the details to his mystery.

"Hi Zexy," said a familiar voice.

Once again, Zexion was dead wrong as a dark scowl began to form on his face. The old lady walking towards him gave a dirty look back, thinking that the look was for her. "What do you want, Marluxia?" hissed Zexion. "Are you going to try and get me into more trouble because being sent halfway across the country isn't enough for you?"

"Calm down, Zexion," said Marluxia. "I only wanted to talk. How is Jersey treating you and Terra? I'm assuming that you're having lots of fun."

"Fuck you, Marluxia," said Zexion. "Why don't you do me a favor and rot in Hell! I'm through with you. I'm tired of you, your damn drug problems, your constant alcoholic needs, and the way you used me. If you ever try to call me back, I swear to God that I will find a way back to California and kill you myself. Do you understand me, asshole?"

He didn't even bother to give the caller a chance to respond. He pressed the end button to finish the conversation with a furious growl escaping his scowling face. The lilac haired youth took in a deep breath to calm down his raging nerves because at the moment he felt like seriously killing somebody and not looking back.

Pushing all that anger back into Pandora's Box, Zexion started to resume his walk to the bookstore.

Zexion entered the bookstore and instantly took in the scent of sweet cinnamon. A calming sigh escaped him as he felt at home in the bookstore that must've been passed down a couple generations. He started to walk down the three aisles, searching for the Classics since he needed a copy of _A Midsummer's Night Dream _for class.

When he finally found the section he was looking for, he crossed paths with Lexaeus who was also going through that same section. It took every bit of self-control that he had not to attack someone he really didn't care for. But he did diffuse a bit after he lashed out at Marluxia. And there in lied the problem, he associated his problems with Marluxia with an innocent bystander.

Lexaeus noticed Zexion just standing there like a frozen idiot. He closed the book he had in his hands and was debating whether to get it or not at this point since he didn't feel like being in arm's length of the kid. He wasn't sure if he wanted to take a swing at Zexion or make out with him at this point.

"I'm sorry," Lexaeus said, simply. "I'm sorry for being born since my existence seems to offend you so much."

Zexion shook his head as he started to take a few steps over towards him. He, sort of, held his head down in shame before picking it up to look him in the eyes. "No, don't apologize. I'm sorry for being such a dick," said Zexion. "You just remind me of the guy that forced me and my brother to come here."

"Your dad?"

"My ex-boyfriend," said Zexion. "So, I'm very sorry for treating you so terribly. If it is possible for you to find it in your heart to forgive me then thank you."

"Well, Jesus would forgive you," laughed Lexaeus, "so, I suppose I can forgive you too."

Lexaeus left it at that as he took the book and sent Zexion as smile as he went over to the register. Zexion found a smile growing on his own face as well, not knowing why it was there in the first place though. It wasn't until Lexaeus was done paying for his book and left the store when he finally realized it.

He actually thought that the football player was kinda nice and…hot.

* * *

The Fair household was a total mess with Sora and Riku having another of their many playdates. So as a result of this, the entire living room was their playground with toys thrown everywhere and cushions turned into fortresses. Zack just stood in the midst of all this childhood chaos, watching as his son and best friend continued to make a large mess in the process of it all. He had no clue how such two, tiny boys could make such a mess in less than an hour, but they had accomplished it nonetheless.

Aerith returned from the kitchen, trying to make dinner, when she noticed everything was kinda trashed. She just shook her head as she pushed Zack forward towards the mess. "You're cleaning this one up, poppa," she said, using her commanding voice. "Don't forget that you need to drop Riku off in ten minutes."

"Right," Zack said, nodding his head. "You think we can make Riku's parents watch the kids from now on?"

"Not after Sora's sugar binge," Aerith reminded him as she returned to the kitchen.

"I forgot," mumbled Zack, "he's banned from their house."

The front door opened up just then with Terra and Zexion coming in. Zack thought he could put his nephews to work, but the pissed off and tired looks he got from them said otherwise. It was better not to provoke them so that there would still be a house in the morning.

Zack gave a heavy sigh as he decided to take Riku home early for the sake of his home and sanity.

* * *

The night was going to be hell for Ven as he lounged around the living room with most of his family. His parents were finally home for a change and even Roxas was "socializing" with them. Roxas's version of socializing just entitled him sitting on his favorite chair, while playing with his PSP. Vanitas was still in the basement, fuming about what happened Friday. Ven knew that Vanitas loathed the fact that he liked Terra instead of him.

What Ventus failed to understand was why Vanitas was so obsessed with him and not Roxas. They were twins for goodness sake. Was the fact that Roxas wasn't so wimpy and vulnerable a turn off for Vanitas? Or was Vanitas just warming himself up for the next thing. Ventus felt chills run down his spine at the thought of Vanitas going after their younger brother next. He prayed that day would never come. He refused to allow Roxas to fall into the nightmare that he's been living through for years.

"Do you boys know what's wrong with Vanitas?" asked their mother.

"Yeah, he's a total psycho," Roxas said, continuing to play his game. "I think we should have him institutionalized or at least put on some serious meds."

"Enough, Roxas," came their father's booming voice. "Ven, why don't you check on your brother? You're the only one who can actually manage to calm him down."

Ventus gulped as his father failed to see what he was asking him to do. Without even realizing it, he was sending his son off to his death sentence. Vanitas was raging so horribly right now that if Ven even attempted to show himself then he would be brutally raped and would spend the remainder of the week limping through the halls of school.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Ven said, softly. "Vanitas isn't in the mood to see anyone."

"Why don't you go anyways, sweetie," his mother urged him. "Maybe you'll actually listen to you."

It was moments like these that he truly hated his parents as he got up from his chair to go down to the basement to meet his death.

* * *

The aftermath of dinner with the in-laws was brutal on Squall's sanity. If there was anyone he hated more than Rinoa it was her parents. They were just as narcissistic and controlling as she was, plus they couldn't cook to save their lives. He dreaded every encounter he had with them then he would have to listen to Rinoa yelling at him for an hour for not being more pleasant with her parents.

Of course, he'd play his part and apologize to her everytime before dropping her off at her place.

As he sped down the road to put as much distance from her as possible, his hunger slowly grew out of control. At this point, he was ready to eat that dead raccoon on the road. Lucky for him though, he saw Cloud's diner at the end of the road so he quickly drove to the parking lot so he could get himself something to eat.

For once, the place was actually empty for a change when he remembered it was a Monday night. The diner was rarely busy on Monday nights so that meant it would pretty much be just him and Cloud. None of the waiters or waitresses or even the cooks were there. It was just Cloud who was getting ready to close early when Squall finally showed up.

"I was just about to close," said Cloud.

"Sorry," Squall said, smiling at him, "but I'm starving. The fiancé's parents don't feed me properly."

Cloud started to chuckle as he rolled his eyes at Squall's attempted humor. He then tossed a menu his way so that he could an order. "Let me know when you're ready," said the owner. "I'm assuming you'll want a Coke?"

"Yeah, and I'll take a burger too," said Squall.

"Alright, I'll see what I can do." Cloud gave him his drink before going around back to the kitchen. It was fortunate for Squall that Cloud had made a couple of burgers already since he was starving himself and figured Sephiroth would want one too whenever he returned. Sephiroth wouldn't be back for another couple of hours, which meant that Cloud could enjoy himself with someone he actually liked being around.

Cloud quickly got to work on preparing the burger so all he really needed to do was make some fries. He threw the fries into the oven to bake them as he went back into the actual diner to talk to his customer, hanging him his burger. "The fries are cooking right now," he told him. "I could use the company for dinner too so I figured I could eat with you."

"Sounds good to me," said the brunet. "You know, we never really had the chance to talk. As long as we've both been here, we never talked to each other. Why is that?"

"I guess we never revolved around the same social circles," said Cloud. "I was the gay, artsy, band geek in high school. You were the ROTC captain and basketball star. Our circles never merged except for competition and the occasional game."

"That still doesn't excuse us for not being civilized with one another. We still could've talked or at least attempted to. So, I think now is a good as time as ever to start. Why don't you tell me a little about yourself, Cloud Strife?"

"Only if you promise to divulge some of your own personal details, Squall Leonhart," said Cloud as he returned to the kitchen.

Once the fries were cool enough to eat, Cloud brought them back and gave some to Squall. He kept the rest for himself just as the two began their conversation. Cloud found himself to be generally happy in Squall's company and finally being able to have a real conversation with the man he's loved for years. Yes, he knew that he loved Squall and he wished that he would feel the same about him.

If only Cloud knew the feelings that were brewing inside of Squall. Although he wasn't willing to admit that it was love, Squall knew that he liked Cloud and found him to be very appealing to him in ways that he never thought possible. If only he could trade his miserable eternity with Rinoa just for a moment with Cloud then he would give up everything. There was no way though that he would be able to do something like that.

They finished eating and talking within the hour, both laughing as Cloud prepared to clean their mess. Squall offered to help Cloud with the clean up, but Cloud refused since the man was a costumer and it would be terribly impolite for him to do that. Squall just shook his head as he took out a card from his pocket and handed it over to the diner owner.

"Alright, but promise me, Cloud," said Squall, "that you'll call me sometime. My cell is on there and I'll pick up anytime."

"Thank you," Cloud said, smiling at Squall. "I promise that I'll call you soon."

Squall started to smile too as he paid the blond for his delicious food. He gave him a twenty dollar tip, which Cloud tried to refuse but found that Squall was just as stubborn as him. Squall waved him off as he left the building to get into his truck and go home.

Cloud took all the dishes into the kitchen and washed them with thoughts of Squall dancing in his head. He couldn't' believe that he actually talked it his dream guy and even had dinner with him. It was all like a dream. No, it was better than a dream. It had actually happened to him, a dream had come true for him.

Unfortunately, the nightmare had returned in the form of Sephiroth who entered the kitchen, as Cloud finished with the dishes, to bring his lover up to the apartment.

So putting his mask on, Cloud submitted to Sephiroth's needs as he allowed the man to take him upstairs.

* * *

Lexaeus just got home when he heard his father's voice yelling at him. So naturally, he had to go over to his father's office to deal with him now. He wasn't exactly looking forward to that, but he knew he best get it over with now before it got worse.

So he entered the office that they had converted from a spare bedroom because his dad needed it since he was such a big, important mayor. Not like Lex or his younger siblings really gave a damn, but they knew better then to provoke their father.

"Yeah pops?" Lexaeus said, entering the decent sized office.

The man was the spitting image of Lexaeus, just an older version of him. His muscles weren't as hard as they used to be since the desk job he had kept him from hitting the gym as much. He was still an intimidating figure though that made Lexaeus cautious.

"I heard you were talking to Zackary Fair's nephew today," his father said, looking down at his paper. "You know how I feel about their kind. I don't want my son to associate himself with people like that."

"I can associate myself with who I want, dad. I'm eighteen now."

"So long as you live under my house then you follow my rules. If I say I don't want you to talk with fagots then I don't want you speaking to fagots, understood?"

"No," Lexaeus said, snapping at the pressure that was eating away at him for years. "Don't preach your homophobia to me. I refuse to allow myself to be filled with all the hate that you've allowed to consume you."

Lexaeus left it at that as he stormed out of the office, leaving the house as well. His mother tried to stop him, but he rudely ignored her as he went out to his car. He slammed the door shut behind him as he pulled out of the driveway with his cell phone in hand. There was only one person who would understand him and he was so glad to have his number.

His online pen pal gave him his number for emergency purposes. Since CaliBoi was out, he agreed to help Lexaeus whenever he needed somebody to talk with. And right now, Lexaeus just needed someone to talk to. He was just so pissed that he was ready to run someone over as he drove to a friend's house to crash for the night.

"Hello?" said a slightly, familiar voice.

"Can we talk?"

"Lexaeus?" said a familiar voice.

"Zexion?" said Lexaeus as he dropped his phone, in shock.

On the other end, Zexion was equally in shock of what just happened.

* * *

ENDDDD!

Here's a little hint for the next chapter...something big happens with Ven's secret out in the open, which leads to a nasty confrontation with Vanitas.


	6. Love the Way You Lie

Author's Note: WOOOOO! Here's another new chapter up! Hope you guys like it. See ya'll next week! Read and review.

"**Love the Way You Lie" by Eminem feat. Rihanna: **

**Just gonna stand there, and watch me burn,  
But that's alright because I like the way it hurts,  
Just gonna stand there and hear me cry,  
But that's alright because I love the way you lie,  
I love the way you lie, I love the way you lie**

**

* * *

**

Things were exceedingly awkward in the aftermath of Lexaeus leaving the house. His father was driving him to the edge of his sanity and now he had to worry about Zexion outing him as well. Sure, they had that cease fire between them, but Lexaeus wasn't sure how long that would last with Zexion. What if Zexion decided to spill that secret out to the school? What if his dad found out about that?

Lexaeus was stressing himself and in every way imaginable. The drive to Xaldin's house was a miserable one for him because he was stressing himself out about Zexion learning who he was. It was so frustrating that he couldn't hide back into the closet and just stay hidden from everyone. Even Zexion's supposed reassurance that he wouldn't say a word could comfort him. The only comfort he could find was probably inside a bottle of liquor.

That following morning, Lexaeus returned home to deal with whatever his parents were going to do to him. No doubt his dad would kick his for running out like that and his mother would be crying hysterical tears. Yeah, he was going to get an ear full when he returned home. Oh well, best to deal with the beast now and get it over with. Maybe they would take some mercy out on him for coming home early at least.

So when Lexaeus entered the house, he was greeted by a strange site. His family was actually sitting at the table for breakfast and they were all acting like nothing ever happened. This was extremely odd to Lexaeus who expected plates and silverware to be flung at his head. But here they all were, his parents, brothers, and sisters sitting like one big, happy family.

It was like stepping into the Twilight Zone.

"Morning?" Lexaeus said, nervously.

"Morning son," his father said, too cheerfully. "Take a seat, boy. Your mother didn't slave herself at a hot stove so you could eat a cold meal."

His mother got a chuckle out of that as Lexaeus slowly sat down at his usual seat.

The table was oddly loud for a change. Not the usual, screaming your head off loud, but the parents attempting to make things normal when they weren't. It was the Stepferd Wives thing who tried to imagine that everything was perfect when really the shit had hit the fan.

When breakfast was over, their mother cleared the table, while Lexaeus's siblings went running off to the bus. Lexaeus was getting ready to leave when their father told him to sit down for a moment. That made a chill run down his spine as he braced himself for the verbal and physical assault that would take place. No doubt his dad would kill him for leaving.

"Last night," his father began to say. "Last night was pretty intense."

"I'm sorry for walking out like that," Lexaeus said, calmly. "I just needed to leave before I said or did anything I would regret."

"I understand," his dad said, just as calmly. "It's just hard to believe that I have a Liberal son who is gay friendly."

Lexaeus went into shock when those words left his mouth. Did his dad just call him a gay friendly Liberal? "Yeah," he said, going with that. "That's what I am. I don't hate gay people like you taught me to, they're good people."

His dad raised his hand at that moment, signaling him to stop. Lexaeus stopped himself since he didn't want to push his dad's tolerance too far out the window. "Let's not talk about this anymore," he told his son. "Just go to school and…please try not to talk to Zack Fair's nephew. Alright?"

"Alright," Lexaeus said as he slowly got up and left for school.

While walking to his car, a sigh of relief escaped him, making him glad that his dad didn't know he was gay.

* * *

Cloud woke up in Sephiroth's arms with his bottom feeling sore and abused. His eyes were glazed over by the empty feeling in his chest and didn't bother to respond at all to Sephiroth's touch. It took all his will to restrain himself from responding at all to his touch, since the silver haired man knew his various sensitive points all too well.

There just had to be a way for him to get out of this. He knew that Squall was the key to breaking free, but the man was getting married soon. Despite the obvious attraction between the two, it seemed like the fates would keep them apart. Squall was doomed to marrying that harpy woman, while he was doomed to be stuck with Sephiroth.

A broken sigh began to escape from his throat as he heard that Sephiroth was fallen asleep. Cloud was relieved to hear that because that meant Sephiroth would be too tired to have a repeat of last night. He checked his wrists to see the new bruises on his sore wrists. His entire body was sore from the abuse he went through with Sephiroth fucking him at every square inch of the apartment.

Peace didn't last that much longer though. Sephiroth woke up and Cloud soon found himself pinned down on his back. Cloud didn't bother to put up a fight as his legs were lifted up so that his bare ass was completely exposed to Sephiroth. Even the intrusion of Sephiroth's large member didn't affect him as badly as it used to, he just allowed Sephiroth to have his way with him as a single tear began to leave his eye.

It felt like an eternity and a half before Sephiroth finally came inside of him. Sephiroth grunted loudly, spilling his seed inside of Cloud's ass. Sephiroth pulled his softening, morning wood out of Cloud than got up from the bed to go to the shower. When the hot water would massage his stiff body, he would expect Cloud to get in to give him a blowjob while he showered, as usual.

That's when the silver lining came into Cloud's head. Sephiroth mentioned that he was going away for another month, meaning Cloud would have another thirty days of freedom. That would be another thirty days to try and figure out how to be rid of him and stop the wedding. It was horrible and selfish, but Cloud didn't give a damn at this point.

He knew that Squall loved him and he would do anything to be with him.

* * *

This was beyond annoying for Zexion as he chased Ventus down the hall with Aqua following behind him. Aqua had no clue what Zexion was planning, but she knew that it involved her best friend and his brother. She just had to know what was going on and why Zexion seemed to hell bent on finding Ventus right now.

They were supposed to be in the cafeteria right now to enjoy their mildly, delicious lunch, but Ventus was nowhere to be seen. Normally, Ventus would be there so they could eat together. The kid wasn't there and Zexion really needed to talk to his stupid ass.

So here Zexion was, marching down the halls to grab onto Ventus's scrawny ass so he could force him to talk. Terra was a wreck now that he thought that Ventus hated him and wanted nothing to do with him. There was no way that Zexion would allow his brother to suffer any longer, he needed Ventus to explain himself to Terra that way he could get the closure that he needed.

"Calm down, Zexion," Aqua said as they left the main building. "I'm sure Ven is around here somewhere."

"Aqua, do me a favor and hush right now," he said, sounding terribly pissed. "I'm trying to focus on what I need to say."

Aqua bit her lip as she remained silent, following him down the hall.

Hanging around the track with his lunch sitting on his lap, Ventus was sitting on the empty field all by himself. Zexion and Aqua tracked him down quickly enough so they went after him to figure out what the fuck was going on. Zexion ran his fingers through his silky hair and pushed it off to the side.

Zexion stood over Ventus's shoulder, while Aqua lingered back. Ven slowly began to pick his head up with his sandwich sliding down the back of his throat. Zexion had his hands on his waist, staring at the smaller blond. "You and I need to talk," he said, bitterly. "After school, you're coming to my house so you can have a talk with Terra."

"I can't," Ven started to say.

"I'm not taking no for an answer," said Zexion. "You fucked up my brother's heart and now you got to clean up the mess. You need to set him straight that way thoughts of you could stop dancing in his head."

Ven and Aqua were both wide-eyed, seeing that wrath building up in Zexion's eyes. Although, for Ven it was nowhere near as terrifying as Vanitas, but it was still intimidating. But then the thoughts of Terra and how he affected him began to build guilt up within his heart. To think that he screwed up someone without any intention just made him feel guilty and horrible.

"Alright," Ven said, weakly. "I'll go to your house."

"Good," Zexion said, simply. "Now come on, we're going to the cafeteria to eat lunch.

* * *

Everything was so messed up in Squall's head that day as he sat with Rinoa, going over plans for their wedding. They were sitting in his tiny apartment above the Fair garage with papers scattered all over the place. He was praying that Rinoa would take the hint that he didn't give a damn about the center pieces that she picked, but that wouldn't happen anytime soon.

"Alright, so I think the red roses would work best!" Rinoa said, cheerfully. "What do you think, Squall?"

"It sounds fine to me," he said, clearly bored by the conversation.

This got an annoyed growl to escape her as she pushed Squall. He only shifted to the side a bit, while Rinoa did everything to restrain herself from attacking him. She was getting frustrated with his lack of enthusiasm for their damn wedding! It was like he didn't care at all, which was completely true, and that idea pissed her off.

"Will you at least act like you're interested!" she shouted, bitterly.

Squall rolled his eyes before turning to face his psychotic fiancé. He gave a false smile before picking up a white rose and handing it over to her. "Fine, I like the white roses," he said to her. "They're less ostentatious then the red ones."

Rinoa snatched the white rose from his hand and threw it on the floor. "You know I hate white roses!" she said, angrily. "It's decided then. We're going with the red roses." She flipped her hair off to the side before going onto the next step of their wedding reception.

He just huffed as he tuned her existence out once more. He could not wait until Rinoa left for the night, which couldn't come any sooner for him. The day would've been perfect had Rinoa not shown up to do all this bullshit. He took the day off from work only to get dragged into this insanity.

The wedding needed to be stopped before Rinoa had the chance to make the rest of his life miserable. What could he do though since he couldn't cancel the wedding on his own accord? His parents, Rinoa, and Rinoa's parents wouldn't allow such a thing. He needed to get Cloud to stop the wedding, which would be the only power on the Earth that could avert this travesty of epic proportions.

But how could he get Cloud to do that without looking like he was using him?

Squall had to admit that there was something special about Cloud that just turned him on. Things just seemed to flow better with Cloud around and all that pressure in life just seemed to melt away when they were together. It was clear that he needed to get Cloud to fall in love with him so that it would force the cook to put a stop to his wedding.

It was so wrong to use Cloud like this, but Squall had to convince himself that this was for the best.

All without even thinking of the possibility that he may actually like Cloud too.

* * *

For the first time in a million years, Terra finally found himself completely free. Class was cancelled because the professor's wife was having a baby and Squall had given everyone the day off at the pit. Terra had no clue what brought such a charitable change out of Squall, but he didn't give a shit since he was free to relax for once. The dark side of his day of relaxation was now there was nothing to distract him from his thoughts of Ventus.

There was no distraction from him to think about the way Ventus's hair fell to the side when he turned to the left a little. Nothing could stop his thoughts of the flush that crew across his pale face whenever he felt embarrassed. Nothing was there to block his thoughts about the fresh, floral scent that the boy's body naturally radiated. And those bright, ocean blue eyes kept dancing across Terra's memory as all his thoughts became focused on one boy.

Ventus would forever be on his mind and he hated himself for letting that boy go.

When Terra entered the house though, he was in for a big surprise. He had got in from the backdoor that led to the basement; he changed into a pair of sweat pants and a muscle shirt, and picked up the empty glasses from his nightstand. He threw his things in the kitchen and slowly made his way to the living room when he saw Zexion and Aqua there. His jaw dropped though when he saw Ventus's sitting on a recliner at the opposite end of the room with his blue eyes locked onto Terra.

"Umm…hi?" Terra said, very slowly. "I didn't know your friends were coming over, Zex. Thanks for the head's up."

"No problem," Zexion said, running over to him. His smaller hands latched onto Terra's wrist, dragging him into the kitchen. Before Terra had the chance to protest what was going on, he was forced to sit on the sofa by Zexion. "We all need to have a talk. Ven, please tell my brother why you're ignoring his existence. And Terra, tell Ven why you're completely obsessed with him."

"Very blunt," Aqua said, calmly. "I like how you get straight to the point."

Zexion thanked her before returning his sights to the silent Terra and Ventus. Both had their eyes locked on the other, but neither one said a damn word. A soft growl escaped Zexion's lips as he yelled at them both to start talking because neither one was leaving till they had their talk.

Aqua was just as anxious too, waiting for something to happen between the two. She could tell that Ventus and Terra had a thing for each other since that was so painfully obvious. Now, she just wanted to see the love blossom between the two and possibly take a pic or two of them making out then post it on Facebook.

"I can't do this," Ven said, standing up. He shook his head as he tried to make his way out the door when Terra went after him. Moving faster than Zexion or Aqua could, Terra caught up to Ven who was trying to get out of there. Ven had his taken by Terra who gently held onto them, carrying for them like a small child. "Please Terra, just let me go. I can't do this."

"Why not? Ven, I really like you," Terra confessed. "Why can you give us a shot?"

"Because I can't," Ven shouted as tears began to stream down his face. "It's not just you…I can't be with anyone. He'll kill me."

The air in the room suddenly got heavier and far more serious as they all turned to face Ven. Terra bore a confused look, while Zexion and Aqua watched the scene unfold with great care. It was making them all wonder just who would want to kill Ven for simply liking someone else. They wondered if he had some crazy boyfriend/ex-boyfriend lurking around somewhere that they didn't know about.

That question was about to be answered though as the front door was suddenly hit with loud banging. Zexion went to the door since everyone else was pretty much frozen still. As soon as his hand touched the door, it went flying open as the knocker forced his way in and smacked Zexion in the head with the door. Zexion crashed to ground with a loud thump, Aqua went running over to check on him when she found herself face to face with Vanitas. The young man looked completely crazed with dark looks bearing down on his dark face. He looked like the embodiment of pure evil at that moment as he went rushing into the Fair home.

"Where is he!" shouted a furious Vanitas. "Where is Ven?"

Ventus tensed up as soon as he heard his brother voice, already fearing the worst as he entered the living room to see Terra holding onto his hands.

As soon as Vanitas saw Terra holding onto Ventus, all Hell broke loose.

Vanitas threw himself at Terra, knocking them both over the sofa. Ven ran away from the two, cowering in the corner as the fight began to break out. Aqua came back into the living room with a bleeding Zexion holding onto her for support. There was blood running down his head, which he knew wasn't a good sign.

Ventus cried hysterically as he called for them all to stop. There was no stopping this enraged Vanitas though, now that he saw them together. Vanitas would kill Terra and everyone else in town because of his "betrayal". His mentally, unstable brother would kill Terra and that was something Ventus couldn't bare as he continued to hide.

Terra knocked Vanitas off him, throwing him towards the coffee table. Vanitas went rolling into the table and within seconds they were both up. Vanitas tried tackling Terra again, but this time the brunet was on his guard. Terra grabbed onto the incoming Vanitas and threw him over the sofa. Vanitas held onto him though, so both of them went rolling off the edge.

Aqua and Zexion scooted away from them, trying to figure out what was going on. Ven wasn't being much help since he wouldn't stop crying as the fight between Vanitas and Terra only got worse. The way that Vanitas attacked Terra and how Ven was reacting to it all made a few dots connect in Zexion's rattled head.

"He's who you were talking about," Zexion said, softly. Ventus only nodded his head just as Vanitas kicked Terra in the chest. Terra went stumbling towards the front door, which made Zexion turn back to Aqua. "Open the front door so they can take this outside. We don't want them to destroy the house."

Aqua moved it as she ran over to the door, pulling it back open just as Terra got back up. Without a word, Terra took the hint and ran outside with Vanitas chasing after him. Vanitas tackled Terra, sending him fast first into the cold snow. Vanitas was dressed firmly for the occasion, but within seconds Terra was freezing his ass off.

"Call the cops!" Zexion ordered Aqua as he pulled Ventus back up. "As for you, we need to get our brothers to stop fighting before they kill each other."

Ventus managed to ditch the crying long enough to get up on his own. He followed Zexion outside the Fair house, while Aqua immediately called the cops. As the boys made it outside, they caught Vanitas trying to strangle Terra.

Zexion looked around for something heavy when he caught sight of a turtle statue they had at the front porch. He bent over to pick it up then tossed it at Vanitas, managing to knock the asshole in the back with it. That gave Terra a split second to regain control of the fight as he delivered a head butt to Vanitas's stupid ass.

"Tell me exactly what's going on," Zexion said to Ven. "Why is your brother going all Rambo on us?"

"Because he doesn't want me to be with anyone," Ven told Zexion, "especially Terra…he wants to keep using me without anyone's interference."

Zexion just left it at that since he cold already hear police sirens.

That didn't mean that the fight came to an end. Terra reclaimed the upper hand of the fight and managed to punch Vanitas in the jaw. That forced the dark haired psycho to stumble back in the snow, giving Terra the chance to tackle him down.

"What the fuck is your problem!" Terra shouted at Vanitas.

"Ventus is mine!" spat Vanitas. "He is my pet, my toy, my slave!"

Terra connected the dots a hell of it a lot faster than Zexion did. He easily translated this psycho spew into the perverse actions that must've been going on between Ventus and Vanitas; no doubt it was all against Ventus's will. "You sick bastard!" shouted the brunet. He held Vanitas down before he began to pummel him across the face. "How dare you call yourself a big brother? Big brothers are supposed to protect and love their younger brothers, not violate them! How dare you violate someone as pure and sweet as Ventus?"

Vanitas's face was slowly being torn up by Terra's frozen knuckles just as Zack's truck pulled up into the driveway. Zack went flying out of there with Squall following after him, while Aerith lingered by the truck. Zack and Squall had to rip Terra away from Vanitas, which only made things worse as Vanitas found freakish strength and collided into all four of them.

Zack and Squall tried to break the fight up, but Vanitas was a complete madman at this point and wouldn't stop until they were all dead.

Lucky for them though that the police finally showed up. Squall and Zack managed to grab onto Vanitas, while Zexion called for Terra to cool down. The two cops threw themselves between the two youths as Vanitas fought for his freedom. It got to the point where one of the cops had to hit Vanitas with a club to get him to stop.

"What the hell is going on here!" shouted one of the cops. "We got a call from some girl that someone was trying to kill someone."

"That was me!" Aqua said as she ran out of the house. "Officers, you need to arrest Vanitas Hart!"

"He attacked me with the front door," said Zexion as he wiped the blood from his head.

"He attacked me with his fists," said Terra as his and Vanitas's blood stained his clothes.

"Fuck you all!" said Vanitas. "Let me go, dickheads! Let me finish them both off, they tried to take my Ventus from me."

"I'm not yours!" Ventus finally snapped, breaking away from Zexion. The blond haired boy marched across the snow-filled, front lawn and hovered towards Terra He took hold of Terra's bloody hand before turning back to the officers. "Officers, arrest my brother. He's been beating and raping me for the past three years."

Horrified gasps filled the air as the cops quickly turned back to Vanitas who was going completely berserk at this point. It took every bit of strength that Squall and Zack had to hold him down, but Vanitas still found the strength to fight them both. The cops worked with the men to get Vanitas into the cop car so that they could take him down to the station.

Ventus clung onto Terra's hands, shaking as he stared into his brother's dark eyes. He heard Zexion and Aqua coming up from behind him, while Terra brought him closer. Ven suddenly felt so much stronger with them surrounding him as he stared into the face of a monster.

"I'm going to kill you all!" Vanitas shouted.

One of the cops had to shock him to finally put the handcuffs on him. He even threatened to shoot the little punk if he didn't calm the fuck down. Vanitas only continued to go berserk in the backseat, completely trapped by the bars that surrounded it. At this point, there was not a single trace of sanity left in his fucked up mind, which made Ventus wonder what led to his decent into madness.

The other cop went over to Ventus, saying that they would need him to go down to the station too with his parents so that they could question them all.

Ventus only nodded his head as he found himself leaning into Terra for support as the cop returned to the car. The sirens went off at full blast as they drove off with his brother still yelling at the backseat. Terra wrapped his arms around Ventus, promising that he wouldn't allow anything like that to happen to him again.

"I'll protect you," Terra whispered to the shaking Ventus.

And somehow, Ventus found comfort in someone's arms for the first time in years.


	7. I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing

Author's Note: WOOOO! Done with another update. Here you go guys. P.S. Pleaes read and review my other fan fic "Once in a Blue Moon." Need support to keep motivated. And dont forget to review this one too! REVIEW!

**"I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith:**

**I could stay awake just to hear you breathing,**  
**Watch you smile while you are sleeping,**  
**While you're far away and dreaming,**  
**I could spend my life in this sweet surrender,**  
**I could stay lost in this moment forever,**  
**Where every moment spent with you is a moment I treasure.**

**

* * *

**

Things were starting to get better in the aftermath of Vanitas being taken away by the police. The Fairs managed to repair the damage done to their house with the Hart family offering to pay for most of it. There wasn't much damage done though just a few broken lamps, chipped paint, and a few holes in the wall. Terra and Vanitas nearly broke the coffee table too but that wasn't that big of a deal since Aerith hated it to death.

Now that things had calmed down a bit Terra managed to get a hold of Ventus while picking Zexion up from class one day. Ventus was hesitant to be around Terra, but at the same time he was craving to be around him. Terra asked Ventus out on a proper date to make up for what happened the other day. It was shocking for Ventus since he never been on a date or even understood why Terra was the one who was apologizing.

So now Terra found himself in the basement, playing hooky from school and work to get everything ready for his date. He ironed what he wanted to wear and even Googled restaurants from the next town over. He wanted to get Ventus away from Alpha for a bit, he just wanted to take him away from all that pain.

Zexion found his way downstairs with his backpack hanging off his shoulder. He had a glare on his face as he started to tie his hair into a ponytail. "Hey asshole," he shouted to his older brother. "Are you still going to give me a ride today or are you going to force me to walk in the snow and cold?"

"I should make your fat ass walk it," said Terra.

"Yeah, but I don't think your new boyfriend would like you mistreating your younger brother," said Zexion. "So come on, give me a ride and I'll make you sound like the greatest guy on Earth."

Terra just shook his head at his brother before grabbing some sweatpants and a coat. He told Zexion to meet him outside, while he quickly got dressed. The brothers left the house with Zack lounging around in the living room since he was taking the day off to take care of a sick Sora. Apparently, their younger cousin had a cold so he was in no condition to go to school.

Zexion threw himself into the car, while Terra quickly started the engine. The car slowly got warmer with Zexion starting to feel his toes again. "So, your date with Ven is tonight," he said, smiling. "What are you guys going to do? You'd better treat him right, brother."

"Of course I would!" Terra said, sounding offended. "Hell, Hitler would probably treat Ven better than his brother did. Anyways, I have everything planned out to the last detail. This kid won't even know what hit him. I'm going to smoother him with so much romance that pretty soon he won't be able to stand it."

"It sounds like you really like him," said Zexion. "I wish you two the best."

"Yeah, I really like him," Terra said with a smile present on his face.

"Well, you should tell him that during your date."

Terra agreed as he parked the car and kicked Zexion out.

* * *

For another brief, shinning moment, there was a cheerful smile on Cloud's face as he ran around the restaurant to get things done. He wized through the crowd of hungry customers with trays of food and drink in his hands. He made sure to greet everyone and try to have as lengthy of a conversation as he could have with his loyal customers. He dove underneath one of his waiter's arm, narrowly escaping getting knocked out by him.

"Safety, Rick," said Cloud.

"Sorry boss man!" said the waiter.

Cloud returned behind the counter and took his apron off as he entered the hot kitchen. He turned on a couple of fans so his cooks wouldn't burn to death, although, it would be a welcome substitute from freezing to death outside. The blond went through the cooking stations to check up on his cooks and to make sure nobody was doing something they shouldn't be doing to the food.

As Cloud worked better than he had in weeks, he remembered that Sephiroth was only gone for a month. He tried not to think too much about that, but the annoying thought would always return. He always had to remember that Sephiroth would eventually come back then the Hell he fought so hard to get away from would come back.

A bitter growl escaped Cloud before he returned to the dining area. He needed to seriously come up with a solid plan to get rid of Sephiroth and soon that way he could implement it before the bastard came back. Cloud picked his apron back up and had it wrapped around his waist within seconds when he noticed Squall's hateful fiancé, Rinoa, sitting with some of her friends. At that point, he just wanted to take his pen and stab her in the eye with it.

But he kept his cool though as he went over to their table to contend with her. He plastered a sincere smile on his face to keep up with the charade. "Hello ladies," he said, politely, "what can I get you today?" Hopefully, a bucket of poison for one Ms. Rinoa Heartily that way she can't marry Squall.

"Ice tea for all of us," Rinoa said, kindly enough. "We aren't quite ready to order any food yet."

"Alright, well I'll be back with your drinks then in just a minute," said Cloud.

He quickly got away from them because every second he spent around Rinoa, he felt like strangling her to death. Oh yes, he was going to kill her the first chance she got. He wasn't going to let her stand in the way of his perfect happiness. He was going to win Squall's heart, he would free Squall from his misery, and they would both live happily ever after. He truly believed this would happen because he was a hundred percent that Squall felt the same way, but couldn't say anything out of "respect" to Rinoa.

At least, that's how he planned everything as he filled their drinks.

Once he got their food orders, he would make sure that the cooks spit in Rinoa's food.

* * *

Freedom at long last!

Lexaeus felt truly joyous to be rid of the football team for the rest of his life. The season was over since they lost their last game, which was great news for him. He was originally going to quit, but this worked out better for him though. He would make sure to tell the couch that he was quitting though so he wouldn't have to play ball in the spring.

Right away, Lexaeus could see the pissed off look on his dad's face when the coach would tell him that his son quit football. His dad would blow a gasket, but the teen didn't give a damn if his dad started to yell at him. He didn't care anymore. Football was such a dumb sport and he only played to keep his dad happy, but since he didn't care about his dad's happiness then that didn't matter to him! He was at long last free from the grueling workouts and long hours of practice so now he was free to pursue things that mattered to him.

Today, Xaldin and him were planning on skipping class to head for the beach. Of course, they weren't going to go swimming. They were just going to get away for the day and have some fun over at the shore. They should be there by noon, maybe one at the latest. So that meant the games would start to open up and they could do some damage there.

It would be a great day for Lexaeus as he enjoyed his first slice of freedom.

"You ready man?" Xaldin asked, sneaking up behind him.

"I thought you'd never ask," Lexaeus said as he looked around the halls.

The duo nodded their heads before making a dash for the doors. They snuck out just as the halls were clearing out and threw themselves out of the prison that was Catholic School. Quickly, before anyone could catch them, they ran to Xaldin's truck since he gave Lexaeus a ride today. They quickly jumped in the truck and threw their things in the back as Xaldin hauled ass out of the student parking lot.

They sped through to the exit, swerving out of the way of security as they were about to close the fence. The rush of adrenaline made them both yell at the top of their lungs as Xaldin drove them to freedom. They both cheered each other on as they bid the shitty town of Alpha goodbye for the remainder of the day.

* * *

Once again, Squall had to outmaneuver Rinoa in order to achieve a few moments of freedom. He escaped her wicked clutches and managed to reach the diner where he would find salvation. It was already passed closing, he could make out Cloud's figure cleaning everything up, and he had a serious need for coffee. So he knocked on the window to get Cloud's attention, hoping that the blond would let him in.

Step one of his plan was a smashing success. Cloud picked his head up and saw Squall standing outside in the cold. The blond just shook his head as he ran to the door, unlocking it for him that way he could get into the warm diner. "I just cleaned the floor and you're getting it all dirty again," said Cloud. "You're lucky I like you so much otherwise I would've just left your ass outside."

"I promise that I'll clean up the mess I made for a free cup of coffee," Squall said, smiling at the blond.

"Fine," Cloud said, trying to sound like he was not happy with this. But the blond couldn't help to smile though as he sauntered on into the kitchen. He poured what was left of the coffee had made for himself and returned, handing it over to Squall. While he was in the kitchen, Squall had shrugged out of his snow-filled jacket and boots.

Squall just stood there in a gray, turtle neck that showed off his muscular physique. He had a pair of jeans on with warm, brown socks covering his feet. Cloud found himself smiling like an idiot, which Squall quickly noticed and began to smile back. The two stood there in the awkwardness of it all with Cloud forgetting the deal they made and that he needed to finish wiping down the tables.

"Good coffee," Squall said, placing the empty cup on the counter. "So…are you going to put me to work yet?"

Cloud blinked his eyes, almost wondering what Squall meant for a second. Then he remembered the arrangement they made and went to the back to pull out the bucket. "Be careful now," he warned the brunet. "We wouldn't want you to mop yourself into a corner."

"You learn not to make that mistake in basic training," Squall laughed as he took the mop and bucket.

The two of them quickly got to work and finished cleaning up the diner in record time. Cloud gave a soft sigh, relieved to actually be done at a decent enough hour where he could watch his recorded episodes of Glee. He was about to thank Squall for his help and let him out of the diner when he noticed Squall looking up at the staircase.

"What?" asked Cloud.

"Well, it's kinda cold outside," said Squall, "and the snow is looking pretty bad. I was wondering, if it wasn't too much trouble, if I could just stay here until morning? I'll even sleep on the couch if it's that much of an issue."

Cloud wanted to beg Squall to get into his bed, but then he's sound like a total whore. He had to play it cool and not seem too desperate for Squall to get into his pants. "That's no problem at all," he said, smiling. "I wouldn't want you to crash because you couldn't see passed the snow. You can stay in my bed though, I don't mind sharing, if you don't mind me cramming in about three episodes of Glee in one night."

Squall started to laugh, knowing that he had Cloud exactly where he wanted him. He needed to keep baiting Cloud on so he could ensure that the blond would do his best to stop the wedding from happening. "I don't mind," he said, smiling. "I'm actually quite fond of Sue giving them a hard time and Rachel getting attacked by Santana."

"That's always fun," Cloud said as he led Squall up the stairs to his apartment with a innocent, nervous smile on his face.

It was at that moment with that look that Squall knew immediately that he truly liked Cloud.

* * *

The pier by the beach was very welcoming despite it being so cold. That didn't stop a few people from roaming around, playing games, and eating food from the venders. Zexion found himself shivering as he walked the pier with Aqua at his side. They too skipped class to party it up at the shore, looking out into the cold water that loomed in the horizon.

"You sure it was a good idea to come here without Ven?" asked Aqua.

"We couldn't get a hold of him, remember?" said Zexion. "Plus, with Vanitas locked up in a cell, which means he could go out on his date with my brother."

"Oh, that's right," she said.

The two walked side by side as they tried to figure out what they wanted to do. Aqua kept talking about what they could do at the pier, while Zexion just tried to find a way not to freeze to death. He was dying for a space heater or a really hot guy so he could steal is body heat. The good thing about today though was that at least the Sun was out to provide warmth.

Zexion gave a heavy sigh as he pointed out a funnel cake standing, begging the girl for one since she was the one who dragged him here. Aqua gave a weak laugh as she walked off to get him a cake, leaving him alone for a few minutes. Zexion just began to walk around in circles, hiding his uniform in the thick jacket he wore.

"You look a little cold." Zexion froze in mid-spin before turning back to see Lexaeus standing right behind him. A startled gasp escaped him when he saw Lexaeus there with Xaldin hiding behind him. "Sorry for scaring you," Lexaeus said, calmly. "You alone?"

"No," said Zexion. "I came with Aqua. So, I'm assuming you boys are skipping?"

"We just took the day off," said Xaldin.

"You're just as bad as us," Aqua said as she returned with Zexion's funnel cake. She bought one for herself too, which Xaldin tried to pick at. "Hey!" She snatched her cake away from him with some of the sugar falling onto her fingers. "Back off my funnel cake before I knock you out, jocko!"

"Be nice," said Zexion. "I'm the one who is supposed to be mean to the football players," said Zexion.

They all went over to the tables, sitting down to talk. Zexion just nibbled at his cake, while Aqua was picking away at it with Xaldin helping her. When they finished, Aqua and Xaldin ran off to play some of the games since she wanted to take him down at the shooting gallery. Zexion continued to pick away at his cake as Lexaeus just took the time to stare at him, a little awkwardly.

Lexaeus turned back to Zexion and saw specks of sugar around his mouth. It looked suspiciously like something else, which made him chuckle a bit. "You might want to clean up a bit before people get the wrong impression of you," he told the younger boy. "People might talk and call you a whore."

Zexion just rolled his eyes as he used a napkin to clean himself up. "It wouldn't be the first time," he told him. He turned back to hear the roar of the ocean, watching as the water crashed into the pillars. "So, Mr. Lexaeus, how is the whole football thing going? I heard about the big loss the team took last week."

"Very big," said Lexaeus, "but I'm cool with it. I quit the team."

"Why?" said Zexion. "Aren't you big football guy? Isn't that what you live for?"

"Hardly," said Lexaeus. "I hated it, I just played it for my dad, but since I'm batting for the other team, I don't care anymore."

Zexion started to laugh as he pushed some of his cake to Lexaeus. The older started to pick at it, while Zexion took a long piece and began to eat it. "Well then, you've admitted that your gay?" said the lilac haired boy. "That's a good first step. You going to tell your dad?"

"A world of no," said Lexaeus. "My dad is like me…only bigger with a strong hatred for gays."

"Yikes," said Zexion. "Frightening mental image."

Lexaeus nodded his head when Zexion noticed the cake was gone. That earned him a strong glare from him, which made Lexaeus shiver as he scooted away. "You go from nice to cold in like two seconds," he told him. "Has anyone told you that you're a little vicious?"

"Terra does all the time," said Zexion.

The two started to laugh when they heard Aqua yell at Xaldin for cheating.

* * *

Things were terribly awkward for the Hart family now. The knowledge that the eldest son was rapping the middle son and he was now in prison left a bad taste in everyone's mouth. Ventus's parents were terrified to learn the truth as they tried to find ways to cope with the knowledge. Roxas felt horribly guilty for not being able to sense his twin's pain after all these years. He was too focused on himself and his own feelings that he could see how Vanitas tortured Ventus.

To try and make amends with this, their parents sent Ventus to counseling as they hoped that by talking with a therapist might help. Ventus wouldn't admit to them that it did help to have someone to talk to who wasn't a cop or related to him, and wouldn't judge him. Another good thing was that he moved back upstairs to stay in Roxas's room. Roxas was going to take over the basement that way Ven wouldn't have to be anywhere near those bad memories.

It was evening now, Ven was getting ready for his date in his new bedroom. All his things were moved into Roxas's room and Roxas things were now in his old room. Ven just gave a heavy sigh as he looked at his reflection in the mirror, wondering why in the world would someone as good as Terra would want to go out on a date with him. He was dressed up in a pair of black jeans with a white button-up. He hated his scrawny body, his hair, and his stupid blue eyes. He hated everything about him and just felt dirty and disgusting as he stared at that damn reflection.

"You look amazing."

Ven turned around to see Terra standing at his doorway. He didn't even hear the doorbell ring or anyone yell about it or anything. He noticed Roxas fleeing from the scene when he turned his sights back on Terra. Terra looked so good and perfect in his black, tight fitting button-up with the sleeves rolled up and dark jeans. He looked so perfect, which made Ven feel so horrible about himself.

"I look horrible," said Ven.

"Nah, I think you're perfect," Terra said as he started walking into the room. "Roxas told me you switched rooms that was probably a good idea. It probably keeps those bad memories away."

"Nothing does," said Ven. "I'll forever be haunted by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named."

"Voldemort?" said Terra.

Ven tried not to laugh as he saw Terra take a seat on the bed. The blond looked away for a moment, looking out the window with his arms crossed. "Are you sure you want to go out on a date with me?" said the boy. "It's not too late for you to run off for someone normal. I'm too fucked up for anyone."

A depressing frown appeared on Terra's face as he rocketed himself up to face Ven. Ventus had tears running down his face, which the blond didn't realize he even had. Terra took hold of Ven, wrapping his arms around him and pulled him close to his chest. "Listen to me," said Terra. "I fell in love with you the moment I first saw you when Zexion and I arrived to town." The confession startled Ventus, making the blue eyes weep freely. "I wanted to be with you since I saw you, and not just in a sexual way. I wanted to hold you, I wanted to kiss you, I wanted to hear you laugh, and I wanted to hear you talk. I wanted everything to about you, and I don't care about your past. I just want to be in your future."

"Wow," Ven said, weakly. Tears continued to run down his face and his voice cracked from the pain. He looked Terra in the eyes, seeing just how much the brunet liked him. He could feel it in the possessive way he held him in his arms. But it was completely different then how Vanitas held him, Terra wasn't constricting and controlling. He could feel that Terra wouldn't hurt him the same way that Vanitas would.

"Do you mean it?" Ventus asked. "Do you really love me?"

Terra didn't say a word as he leaned in and kissed Ventus on the lips. He let his lips do the talking with the promise that would last a lifetime. There was a powerful message behind the kiss as Terra used that kiss to promise how much he loved Ventus and would always be there for him.


	8. Sometimes

Author's Note: WOOO! Happy Thanksgiving everybody! Here is the next chapter. :] I hope you all like it. ALSO! I'm planning on writing a Pokemon fanfic based in Johto off of SoulSilver/HeartGold. If you guys are willing to read it then let me know that way I can get to work on it once I complete this fic. Well, I hope you guys like this chapter. And warning, there is a lemon at the end! Read and review.

"**Sometimes" by Britney Spears:**

**You tell me you're in love with me  
Like you can't take your pretty eyes away from me  
It's not that I don't want to stay  
But every time you come too close I move away**

* * *

Cloud was longing to have Squall's arms around his body. He longed to feel those perfect lips touch his neck. He longed to feel the brunet make love to him, washing away all those painful lies he suffered through. He longed to have the man love him the same way that he did.

The love Cloud had for Squall was only going stronger by each day. The pain was also growing deeper as he worked the diner and had to watch Squall with that wicked fiancé of his. His blue eyes would glaze over with pain everytime he saw Rinoa fawn over Squall, holding onto his arm, and planting a kiss onto his cheek, while Squall tried to suffer through it all. Cloud felt his heart break everytime he saw this, but the silver lining was that he knew how much Squall hated this.

Squall would never love Rinoa, but Cloud still wasn't certain if Squall truly loved him. There were times when Cloud truly thought so. Everytime Squall would wander into the diner after closing and spend hours with him just talking. Then there was their time together only a few days ago. Squall had actually stayed with him that night, watching Glee with him, while holding him on the couch. Never before had Cloud felt so secure as he worked through the aftermath of the Thanksgiving holidays.

"Hey boss!" shouted Eliza. "We need more coffee grounds!"

"Alright," Cloud responded as he finished with a table. He ran to the back and got what was left of the coffee ground for his caffeine addict guests. He handed them over to Eliza before going over to the next table to help the hungry customers who were finally ready to place their orders.

An hour passed quick enough and Cloud still saw Rinoa all over Squall. She was fawning over him, while scowling him about their wedding plans. Apparently, Squall didn't want to budge about certain factors after the wedding, which Rinoa was adamant about having. One of the biggest factors being the issue of kids: Rinoa wanted kids right away, while Squall didn't.

It was at that point that Cloud knew he needed to stop the wedding before it was too late. If Rinoa had her way then she would get pregnant and Squall would forever be stuck with her. Squall is too nice of a man to abandon the mother of his children, and Squall knew he wouldn't abandon her too if she were to get pregnant. This was something he worked hard to keep secret from Rinoa, from anyone in fact.

Cloud gave a bitter sigh as he walked back into the kitchen as he thought of the best way to break up the wedding.

* * *

While sitting at the cafeteria, Zexion found himself stealing glances at the table that Lexaeus was sitting at. He was stealthy about it and waited until Aqua was distracted by talking to Ventus before doing anything. His eyes would turn to the corners just so he could get an occasional peak at the big hunk that he was starting to fall for.

It was shocking that he even admitted that, even if it was only in his head.

After loathing Lexaeus's existence and projecting his hatred of Marluxia through him, Zexion found his heart beginning to melt for him. That was another issue that was on his mind. Marluxia continued to stalk him through the phone and Facebook, which was making things all the more difficult for him. He still bore the emotional scars from being with that asshole, which made him not want to have anything to do with another guy. He knew he couldn't completely close his eyes off, especially after seeing Ventus slowly opening his up to Terra after everything that happened with Vanitas.

Zexion gave a soft sigh as he thought about how much he was starting to like Lexaeus, especially after their encounter at the pier. It was nice just talking to him, getting to know more about how the big guy ticked. But it was also nice to not be on his guard all the time, he didn't have reason to be on his guard when around Lexaeus. Sure, at first he didn't trust a soul after how things went, but now things had calmed. He had transitioned from being a hateful, angry soul to calmer one that just craved for someone to love him.

"I'm pathetic," he whispered to himself as he drank his lemonade.

Aqua and Ventus turned to him, thinking that they heard something from him. Zexion simply shook his head as he told him that it was nothing. The duo shrugged their shoulders before returning to their conversation about their plans for Christmas. They asked what Zexion had planned, but he said that he would more than likely be staying here.

"Your dad doesn't want you back for the holidays?" asked Aqua.

"No," said Zexion. "From what Zack told me, he'll be out of the country anyways so good riddance to a shitty dad."

"That's a little harsh?" said Ventus. "You did kinda screw things up back home."

"And just who's side are you on, mister?" said Zexion.

Ventus started to laugh, while turning away to avoid the wrath of Zexion.

Zexion simply shook his head as he finished eating what they called "lunch" at this school. It was supposed to be fried chicken, but Zexion knew what fried chicken looked and tasted like. This wasn't fried chicken, it tasted more like crap. Before he could get off on his rant about how much the food sucked, Aqua told them how her parents were going on a trip to the Caribbean so that meant the house would be empty.

Zexion and Ventus shook their heads though at the thought of another party, they didn't want a repeat of last time.

Aqua just sighed and agreed, deciding to keep it a small party amongst close friends.

* * *

While leaving the cafeteria, Lexaeus found himself turning to watch as Zexion left with Aqua and Ventus following. The big guy gave a heavy sigh before he turned in the opposite direction and thought about how he blew it again. As Zexion struggled to cope with the truth, Lexaeus had come to terms with his feelings for Zexion and was willing to admit he liked him. Although, he would only admit this to certain people like Zexion, himself.

There was an obvious attraction between the two, but neither one was willing to admit it to one another that it was present.

As Lexaeus walked off to class with his friends, he tried to come up with a way to talk to Zexion alone. He had abandoned the gay chatroom since he was back in his parents' house and things were shaky between him and his dad. He didn't want to invoke any unnecessary wrath so he had to come up with a new plan to talk to Zexion and get to know him better. So he took some time to himself and schemed on the best approach to this.

He did have Zexion's number, but he wanted to have personal time with him. He couldn't go to the Fair house since no doubt his dad probably had spies all over the city. The bookstore incident was still fresh enough on the old man's mind that Lexaeus didn't want to risk a repeat of that. The frustration was providing him with a heavy headache that was only expanding with each failed thought that popped into his head.

It didn't help that they weren't even in the same grade level. There was a year gap between them and Zexion was a rocket scientist so he was taking strictly all advanced placement classes. Lexaeus wasn't that bright and the classes he did have weren't the same ones Zexion had. It pissed him off that he couldn't find a way to spend any time with Zexion that would provide him with a valid excuse.

The fact they didn't even hang around the same social crowd didn't help either.

While he went off to the counselors' office to pick out a new elective since he was dropping football, he ran into his former coach. It was almost quite literally that he collided with the brawny coach that managed to remain his former physique. Lexaeus apologized for nearly crashing into him, but coach didn't mind since he was hoping to talk to him anyways.

"Hey Lex, do you still need volunteer hours for NHS?" asked the coach.

"Yeah," said Lexaeus. "Why? What's up, Coach Grayson?"

"Well, Coach Carter needs help with his P.E. class," said the coach. "If you're willing, you can assist him during his eight period class. It'll be perfect for you since you're dropping football."

Lexaeus nodded his head, already agreeing to it since he needed those extra hours. Helping out the coach would look good on his scholarship applications. "Sure coach, I have to go change my schedule anyways," he said, smiling. "Let Coach Carter know I'll help him out."

"Alright," said Coach Grayson, "take care, Lex."

While the coach left and Lexaeus went to the office, a thought crossed Lexaeus's mind as he remembered that Zexion had P.E. that period.

This was insanely perfect!

Only a higher power could've put this together.

"Thank you, God," Lexaeus whispered under his breath.

* * *

Now that he was free from Rinoa for a moment, Squall rested on his empty bed as he stared up to his ceiling. The day of doom was looming closer and closer with each second that passed. His Christmas present would be a lifetime of misery unless he did something to get rid of Rinoa and fast. Sure, divorces were great and all, but Rinoa was evil and vindictive. She refused to sign the pre-nup, which meant he would be extremely screwed unless he acted fast.

He could only pray that Cloud would do something to stop the wedding. Since he couldn't run off on his own accord, he needed Cloud to do something. Well, maybe he could just call the wedding off on his own, but that would probably do more harm than good. His dad did own the construction company he was supervising, which would put him out of a job and out on the streets. Well, maybe not the streets. Zack wouldn't toss him out, but Aerith might if he pissed her off enough.

That's why needed Cloud, in more ways than one.

With each day that passed, his feelings for Cloud were only growing stronger. Pretty soon he would have to admit to himself that he loved Cloud, if only he believed in love. Although, he did feel kind of guilty about using Cloud like this to get rid of Rinoa though, but he knew it was for the greater good. The universe would spiral out of control if Rinoa had her way and he would forever be forced into a lifetime of misery. He couldn't allow himself to be one of those guys in a miserable marriage that they couldn't get out of.

"My life is insanely fucked up," he told himself. "I'm insanely fucked up."

* * *

They were alone in the Fair basement and sitting on a bed in Terra's room with Ventus curled up in Terra's arms. Ventus couldn't believe he agreed to show up, especially after he humiliated himself with all that crying the other day. Terra assured him though that it was fine that he found it cute and natural considering everything Ventus had went through. He reminded Ventus of this with every kiss he laid on his cheek, only on his cheek because he wasn't sure how Ven would react to another kiss on the mouth.

Terra had his back up against the metal headboard of his bed with his arms wrapped around Ventus's body. The TV was on to provide background noise and to serve as a distraction for the blond as he tried to slowly take everything in. Reruns of Family Guy proved to be a worthy distraction for him, leading Ven to chuckle a bit as he nuzzled into Terra's chest. This earned a cheery smile from Terra as he continued to focus on the Brian and Stewie centered episode, and not on the adorable blond in his arms.

"I like this," Ven said, softly as he held onto Terra's arm. "This feels nice."

"Glad you're enjoying yourself," said Terra.

Ven just nodded his head a little as he leaned further back against Terra. His eyes slowly began to glaze over with Family Guy no longer keeping his focus. The cold basement brought back memories of the nightmare he lived through with Vanitas. Everything was just fine, but within a split second, Ven began to cry out in pain as memories flooded into him. Every wicked touch that Vanitas laid on his body, the pain he inflicted upon him, and the tare he felt everytime Vanitas penetrated him began to rush back.

Terra held Ven all the more tighter, while trying to whisper soothing words into him. Ven continued to scream and cry as he tried to wiggle his way out of Terra's arms. There was no way though that Terra would let him go though, not when he was panicking like this. Terra kept his arms on Ven and promised that they would make it past this, promising him that he was safe.

Once Ven finally began to settle down when he heard Terra tell him he was safe. A heavy sigh of relief began to escape him as he settled down within Terra's arms with tears running down his face. "Why don't you just give up on me?" asked Ven. "Anyone else would leave me. I'm not worth the time or the trouble. I'm just so insanely fucked up."

"How many times do I have to tell you this," said Terra. "You're not fucked up." He spun Ven around so that he was now lying on top of his chest. Terra continued to hold onto him as he looked the younger blond straight in the eyes. "Ventus Hart, I love you. I love you with all my heart and I have since I first saw you at the park months ago. Please believe me, I love you, Ven. I love you more than anything."

"But this just can't end well," said Ven.

"Then we won't let it end!" said Terra. "We never have to end because I love you. I would never hurt you like Vanitas did; I promise to keep you safe and loved. You will never have to know suffering with me. Everything and anything we do will strictly be with your consent."

At this point, Ven started to cry again, but oddly enough these were tears of joy. He cried out with relief as he buried his face into Terra's chest with no doubt every bit of water in his tiny body leaving him. Terra was glad he had a bottle of unopened water sitting on the nightstand; this kid would no doubt die of dehydration. He waited until Ven stopped crying long enough before offering the water to him when Ven acted very boldly.

This time, Ventus planted a kiss on Terra's lips, sending the brunet to a higher plane of existence. Acting even more strangely, Ventus started to pull on Terra's shirt, pulling it above his chest. He ran his hands up the bronze, hard torso, which brought shivers to Terra as he opened his mouth to invite Ventus's tongue inside of him.

The sudden act of boldness shocked Terra, but aroused him all the same as Ventus had his way with him.

* * *

Very slowly, Terra began to undress Ventus as they kneeled on top of the mattress. Terra already had his chest up above his pecs, which Ven traced very slowly. Ven's shirt had been unbuttoned by Terra and was now tossed carelessly to the floor. The blue-eyed boy looked into Terra's eyes that led to the brunet to lean in to kiss him very gently on the lips.

"Are you sure about this?" Terra asked, softly. "I don't want to force you into anything. I don't want you to relive the nightmare."

"I need this, Terra," Ven said, trying to maintain the courage he mustered up. He started to wrap his thin arms around Terra's neck and pressed his head against the rock, hard chest. He closed his eyes and focused solely on the heart that beated underneath. The real heart, the heart that promised not to hurt him. "I've lived for years in suffering. I really need something good in my life." He looked up to Terra's eyes, his arms still locked around his neck, and their bare chests touching. "I need to make some good memories. I need you to push all the bad things away."

Terra simply nodded his head as he gave Ven another kiss.

Everything was soft and gentle, not proceeding any further unless Ven said so. When their kiss broke, Terra finished pulling off his shirt and got rid of the tight material. Their arms and hands soon wrapped around one another as they shared another kiss. Ven kept all thoughts of Vanitas at bay as he chose to focus solely on Terra and only Terra. He soon found him on his back with Terra doing something completely unexpected.

While Terra was unzipping Ven's jeans, he laid gentle kisses around his hips. He tugged the tight-fitting denim from the blond's body and threw that on the ground. Terra had removed the briefs as well so that now Ven was fully nude. Terra didn't take advantage of him like Vanitas would have. Instead of unzipping his own pants and fucking him raw, Terra began to kiss every square inch of Ven's body, while running his hands through everything. Ven never felt so special nor had such attention placed upon him. With every touch, Ven felt all the more special and before he knew it, Terra took him in his mouth.

Ven gave out a soft gasp for air when Terra started to suck on his dick. Terra took the whole thing in his mouth and used his tongue to swirl around the sensitive head. This caused more cries to escape from Ven as he started to dig his hands into the sheets. Terra continued what he was doing, unhinging his jaw more to take in the blond's hairless sac as well. Once he did this, Ven completely lost all control as he gave into the sensual feelings that Terra gave him.

Soon though, Terra removed his mouth from Ven's dick and started to crawl up to kiss him. Ven could taste his own sweet pre-cum in Terra's mouth, which was oddly hot. This made Ven want Terra all the more as he ran his hand down to cup the large bulge in the front of his jeans. Terra took in a sharp intake of breath as he looked down to see Ven cupping his privates from the thick fabric. Terra unzipped himself and had Ven help him remove all that was left of his clothes.

Once all that was done, Terra and Ven lay side by side with their naked bodies rubbing against each other. Ven soon found himself on his side with Terra spooning him from behind. Terra's dick was rubbing against the crack of his ass; while he used a hand to cup Ven's still sensitive privates. Kisses would be pressed against Ven's neck as Terra reminded him of how much he loved him and how he only wanted to do what he wanted.

Ven started to beg for Terra to take him, honestly wanting things to proceed further. He then lay back on his back with Terra diving between him and raised the thin legs so that they were over his broad shoulders. Terra raised Ven's cute bottom up and proceeded to give him a rim job. The way Terra's tongue would graze against his puckered hole brought chills down Ven's spine that he didn't even feel it when the first finger intruded inside of him. He felt the second though, which started to make him cry out with pain mixed with pleasure.

Terra took things very slowly though and made sure that everything was what Ven wanted. He wanted Ven to be properly ready for what was about to happen as he quickly remembered that he still had some lube left in his nightstand. Once he heard that Ven said he was ready, Terra quickly took the lube out and put it to use. With the slick gel applied to his dick, Terra took his sweet time easing it inside of Ven as the blond wrapped his smooth legs around his waist.

They were both crying out in pleasure now with every inch that Terra put into Ven. Soon, Terra found himself hovering over Ven's body with his full, eight inches inside of him. Ven was wiggling underneath him as mixed cries of pleasure and pain started to escape those pouty lips that Terra soon found himself devouring. They both felt passionate shivers creep throughout their bodies as they completely submitted to one another.

Terra started to slowly thrust inside of Ven, taking everything very slow at first. The tight heat completely wrapped around his dick, making Terra feel large and in charge. The sensations that Ven's tight ass brought him gave Terra pleasurable chills as he slowly took things a little faster once he hit the bundle of nerves that drove Ven wild with passion. Ven was panting in heat at this point, loving every bit of it as Terra made love to him. And that's what made Ven feel truly special. Unlike being fucked raw and like a whore when Vanitas raped him, Terra was actually being gentle and caring as he made love to him.

"I love you, Terra!" Ven cried out, suddenly.

As soon as those words spilled from his lips so did Ven's seed. His dick went out of control as he came all over himself without even the slightest of touch. All that was needed was for him to confess his feelings for Terra and to have his lover rub against his tender prostate.

Not much longer after Ven came, Terra found himself losing complete control of himself. He didn't care though as he gave out a sharp gasp before spilling his own seed inside of Ven's tight ass. Once he was done dropping his load, Terra pulled his dick with a slight pop heard just between them.

Terra collapsed beside Ven with the blond curling up into his chest. Terra had a smile growing on his lips as he took hold of Ven, pulling him even closer to his muscular, hairless chest. "I love you too, Ventus," he said, softly. "Now, you lost your true virginity."

Ven chuckled a bit as he thought about that. He supposed he did lose his true virginity since for once in life, the sex was consensual. "I guess I did," he said, chuckling slightly. He soon felt very sleep and suddenly warm even though the basement was cold before the sex started.

Terra noticed the slight chill growing between the two and quickly threw a blanket over them. As soon as the blanket touched them, Ven was out like a light. Terra was honestly surprised by this, but he found himself floating to high in a state of bliss to really care. He decided that he was a little sleepy too as he turned his TV off and fell asleep with Ven still in his arms.

The night soon consumed the young lovers as they drifted into a sound sleep.


	9. Lovegame

Author's note: Woo, here is a short, sweet chapter for all you good boys and girls...mostly girls since they're the only ones who read yaoi. HAHA! Here you go, lovely people. Read and review.

"**Love Game" by Lady Gaga:**

**Let's have some fun,  
This beat is sick,  
I wanna take a ride on your disco stick.**

**I wanna kiss you,  
But if I do then I might miss you babe,  
It's complicated and stupid got my ass squeezed by sexy Cupid,  
Guess he wants to play,  
Wants to play a love game, a love game**

**

* * *

**

Terra took Ventus to the park with his hand locked around the blond's hand. Ventus was giggling a little, but he liked having Terra touching him, holding him, and whispering to him just how much he loved him. It was nice to know that after all of the madness, after all the pain that there was somebody out there who could truly love him. He was no longer going to be used for some sick bastard's twisted perversions.

Terra would never hurt him like that, the thought would never cross his mind even in a billion years. He would never be sick of Ven's presence or frustrated by him in any shape and form. He wouldn't give Ven up now that he finally had him, now that he finally found his true love. After spending years of having meaningless flings and romances, Terra finally found something that was worth holding onto and there was no way he was ever giving that up.

"You look amazing in the winter," laughed Terra.

Ventus started to blush as he pushed on Terra's arm, forgetting that he was holding onto his hand. So when he pushed him, Ven consequentially caused Terra to lose his balance and they both went tumbling into the snow. They crashed with a thump and they were soon bathed in snow that was slowly beginning to seep into their winter clothes. Even with all the thick, bundles of clothes they had on, they were going to get soaked and sick like Sora was right now.

"What was that for!" said Terra. "Are you trying to kill us now, Ven?"

"No," Ven said, shaking the snow from his hair. "I was just trying to…I don't know what I was doing, but this wasn't it! I didn't want to land in the snow and get all snowy!"

"Well, we are snowy now," laughed Terra. "So, I guess I need to get you out of those wet clothes and into something warm!"

Terra hoped back on his feet and easily picked Ven up. The blond gave out a semi-girly scream as Terra carried Ventus bridal style back to his car. Ven yelled at Terra to put him down and that he was capable of walking himself. Terra didn't listen though and just said that he needed to make sure his little snowflake was perfectly safe.

"You're a total dork," said Ventus. "Remind me why I love you, again?"

"Because I'm just so awesome," Terra said, smiling at him.

"I guess you are," Ven said, kissing him on the cheek.

Terra kept his smile as he carried Ventus's light ass all the way to the car. He helped him into the car and started the engine with the heat going on full blast before they began to strip layers. They were going back to the Fair house anyways so Ven was free to steal some of Zexion's clothes. They stripped down to their regular clothes, which weren't wet and threw the rest in the back.

They just sat there for a moment with the heat cranked up and the snow falling all around them. Ven looked absolutely radiated in Terra's eyes. Nothing could be even the slightest bit more perfect then his precious angel. As for Ventus, he looked at Terra and saw someone heroic and strong. Never in his wildest dreams did he ever think that anybody like Terra would care for him the way he did or make him feel so precious.

"I love you," said Terra.

"I love you," said Ventus.

The young couple leaned in towards each other, their lips making contact in a matter of seconds.

* * *

They spent another night alone, together.

Squall was helping Cloud clean the diner up that night, which was special deep clean night. That meant they would spend nearly the entire night cleaning up everything and of course they didn't have any backup. Cloud was total neat freak and didn't like anyone deep cleaning since they never did it right. However, he had a former, sexy army man to help him out so he could trust that Squall would be perfectly up to the job.

And Squall didn't even know what he had bargained for when he said he'd help him clean. It was almost like being a Private and scrubbing toilets with toothbrushes again. Cloud was just that anal about having the place deep cleaned, which almost made Squall regret coming here. That and all the chemicals were starting to get to him so it was a good thing that they had the front door opened even it was like negative twenty degrees outside. It was better then dying of ammonia poisoning.

He had just finished cleaning up the tables, the chairs, and the floors when Cloud came out from the counter, covered with dust. It looks like Cloud took this thing even more seriously then he thought possible. The trash can was full of junk that probably got cluttered in there during the daily chaos. So, a month's worth of chaos was certainly a lot, which was when Cloud mentioned that this was only the beginning.

The kitchen still needed to be cleaned.

"Why don't we save the kitchen for tomorrow night!" Squall quickly suggested. "There's no sense in completely tiring ourselves out. I mean, we could clean tonight, but then we wouldn't be able to function at all tomorrow! And we both have to work tomorrow."

"I have somebody taking care of the restaurant for the morning shift," said Cloud. "But if you can't handle cleaning up then you could go, Squall. It will only take me three more hours to clean up the kitchen."

And there was the guilt card. Cloud dealt his hand quite nicely, which made Squall bite down on his lip and decided he would just call in sick. He couldn't leave Cloud like this and the blond was starting to take advantage of the fondness that he had for him. It was a low and dirty trick, but Squall had to respect it a little, but he had a trick of his own to play.

A trick that would certainly get them out of cleaning and it would ensure that Cloud saved him from marrying Rinoa.

"Hey, Cloud!" Squall said from across the counter.

"Yeah, Squall?" Cloud asked before he went to throw the trash away.

Squall leaned across the counter and placed his hand on the back of Cloud's head. He pulled the blond close, winding his fingers around those blond locks. He brought Cloud as close as he could before locking lips with him. Cloud completely stopped breathing for a moment with his eyes glued opened, while Squall continued to kiss him.

His body was completely paralyzed by the kiss, which made his heart melt when Squall ended it and pulled away from him.

"You sure you want to keep cleaning?" asked Squall.

"No," Cloud whispered, completely breathless. "I'd really like to do that again."

"Me too," Squall chuckled a little.

* * *

The period was nearly over and Zexion was still refusing to budge as he stood there in his gym uniform, staring at the rope in front of him. Lexaeus was standing beside him, trying to convince the lilac haired boy to climb the rope, but there was not forcing him. Zexion was refusing to climb the rope since it was just stupid and he didn't care if this was going down on his grade.

"It's only gym," said Zexion, "it's not like it matters at all."

"Zexion, can you just climb the damn rope," said Lexaeus. "If it's not such a big deal then you can at least attempt to climb it so I can give you your participation grade."

"Why don't you just give me the grade now and we pretend like I climbed the rope?" said Zexion.

"I'm not going to cheat for you just because you're too lazy."

"I'm not lazy, jackass."

Neither one showed any signs of budging with Zexion being too stubborn to climb the rope, while Lexaeus wasn't going to fake a score. Lexaeus wasn't going to get in trouble for him, but it seemed that Zexion didn't care. He was not climbing this rope and he had his foot put down on the matter. It amazed Lexaeus how unwilling Zexion was to show any signs of cooperation, rather getting a failing grade then at least trying.

Lexaeus tried his hardest to get Zexion to move, but this was going to be a lot more difficult then he imagined. He would need to do some serious convincing in order to get him to budge even the slightest. What could he do though to convince the incredibly, stubborn Zexion to climb a rope that he was dead set against climbing?

"Please, Zexion, I'm begging you!" he said, loudly. "I want to hurry up and get out of here."

"Then let's just ditch now," said Zexion. "Come on, It's not difficult! I did it all the time back in California."

Lexaeus dropped his clipboard and grabbed onto Zexion's shoulders, startling the boy. "Just climb the damn rope!" he shouted. He started to shake Zexion, while repeating the same thing over and over again. He so desperately wanted to get out of here and this boy wasn't making it any easier for him.

Once Lexaeus stopped shaking him, Zexion gave out a defiant no. Lexaeus wanted to strangle the boy, but Zexion stopped him by placing his fingers on Lexaeus's lips. "You're so stubborn," said Zexion. He then leaned in towards him, kissing the big guy on the lips.

When Zexion broke the kiss, he quickly started to climb the rope, while leaving Lexaeus in shock. It took not even a minute for Zexion to climb the rope and get back down. When he returned to the ground, Lexaeus was about to question him, but the boy only stared to walk away from him.

"You're lucky I like you so much," Zexion said, simply.

"You like me?" Lexaeus said, sounding very confused.

"Did I say that?" Zexion said, trying to act dumb.

Lexaeus was left wondering if this really did happen, while Zexion went to the locker room to change.

* * *

And things were only getting better for him and Squall.

Cloud was still buzzing from their make out session last night, which made him a little light-headed and forgetful. That was why he continued to take advantage of having Gracie take over for the morning and early afternoon shift so that he could recover from their night together. Although it was only kissing, Cloud felt like they had gone through so much more since he felt so…words couldn't' describe how he felt!

Cloud just knew that every fiber of his being was on fire! He couldn't wait until he got the chance to spend more time with Squall, in the near future. He spent the whole day just thinking about Squall as he returned to work that evening. He felt a lot more refreshed and invigorated, ready to tackle the rest of the day, including the dirty kitchen he still needed to deep clean.

While he started to make his runs through his diner, he noticed that Rinoa was there with her parents. He tried to pay them no mind as he cleared out a table to help out one of his busboys when he heard Rinoa mentioned how excited she was. That caught his attention as he continue to listen as she said how excited she was for the wedding and couldn't wait until her and Squall were officially married.

Hearing the words come out from her mouth, Cloud started to second guess himself. He knew how much Squall didn't want to marry her, but could he bring himself to ruin a young woman's dreams? Could he live with himself for damaging her just because he was in love with her fiancé? If anything, Squall should be the one to call off the wedding and not him.

Cloud started to make his way outside of the diner to get some fresh air. He didn't care if he wasn't dressed for the occasion, he just needed to get away for a moment. He couldn't' believe that he was going to give up on Squall though! But what he was going to do was horrible and he just wasn't sure if he could live with the consequences of all of this.

"I love Squall though," whispered Cloud. "I love him more than anything or anyone."

"Oh really now. Even more then you love me?"

The familiar voice shocked Cloud as he spun to the side to see that Sephiroth was back. The silver haired man had an intense glare in his eyes, which made Cloud shiver with fear. He was positive that Sephiroth wouldn't attack him in broad daylight like this, but he could never be certain with a psychopath like him.

Sephiroth wouldn't stop looking at him, while Cloud only grew more certain that he needed to be rid of him.


	10. Your Love is My Drug

Author's Note: Sorry for the really short update. Haha. This one is a little lengthier and the same goes for the next one. P.S. the next chapter will have the wedding! So read and review!

"**Your Love is My Drug" by Ke$ha:**

**Maybe I need some rehab or maybe just need some sleep,  
I got a sick obsession, I'm seeing it in my dreams,  
I'm lookin down every alley, I'm making those desperate calls,  
I'm staying up all night hoping hitting my head against the wall.**

**

* * *

**

Lexaeus was dealing with traumatizing effects of the kiss he had with Zexion, which he was positive that he did have now. Foreign feelings began to assault his mind with never ending questions popping up to his head. Nobody saw the kiss, which was a very good thing, but that wasn't what he was worried about right now. His concern was just how he was going to deal with these brewing feelings that were a raging storm within his heart.

And that's how he found himself standing in the cold, staring off into the cold space. He stood at the middle of the empty park and threw rocks over a frozen pond. There wasn't a single outside thought going through his mind; his only concern was of Zexion. The lilac haired boy was the only thing that was on his mind and the only one that he seemed to care about right now.

"What am I going to do with myself?" he said, softly. "I can't pretend like it never happened now. I can't just say that these feelings don't exist any longer. I need to figure out what I'm going to do about him; I need to know what I'm going to have to do with Zexion."

The cold wind blew against his stony face, while he focused on the frozen pond. His muscles tensed up underneath all the winter clothes he wore as he immersed himself into thought. He was questioning every part of himself and everything that he felt about Zexion. The feelings he had could no longer be denied because of that "harmless" kiss that he received. No longer could he pretend to be straight, but he couldn't afford to be gay because that would surely get him thrown out of the house and possibly killed.

There were many decisions that Lexaeus needed to make that could only be answered by one, simple question.

Did Zexion feel the same way about him? If Zexion truly did have feelings for him then it would make a world of a difference for him. It would mean that he no longer needed to be alone, pretending to be somebody that he wasn't. He could find a way to be with Zexion, someone who understood and appreciated who he truly was meant to be.

But could he also put Zexion through the hell of his family life? Lexaeus's family would not accept them if they ever found out and it was a possibility that his dad might kill Zexion too. He couldn't risk Zexion's' safety just for his own, personal happiness. He wouldn't wish that upon anyone who was dear to his heart.

All this inner turmoil wasn't doing Lexaeus any good as he found himself circling around the pond. He continuously mumbled to himself that it shouldn't matter, that he should be with someone who completes him. That's when the thoughts of what could happen and just how dangerous it was for them started to flash across his mind.

When all the confusion seemed to destroy his mind, Lexaeus felt a hand touching his arm and seemingly pull him from the darkness. The young man turned to see the object of his affection standing right beside him with a curious look on his porcelain, smooth face. His jaw dropped a little when he saw that it was Zexion that touched him, standing in the freezing cold with him that vexed him so.

"You weren't at school today," said Zexion. "You weren't there to hassle me during gym class so I got worried. What are you doing here? It's like zero degrees out here."

"Fifteen," Lexaeus corrected him, "but I guess it is close enough."

"That's not answering my question," said Zexion. "What are you doing here?"

Lexaeus simply shrugged, trying to avoid Zexion pushing for an answer. He wasn't sure if he should even bother explaining himself to the boy since he wasn't sure if he wanted to involve him in the mess of his life. But Zexion was never one to be ignored and avoided. When he wanted something answered then he did everything in his power to get it done.

Since stone face wasn't budging, Zexion just continued to hold onto the young man's arm. He, surprisingly, remained silent as he stared at the lake with him. Lexaeus tried to hide the heat that was burning away at his face, while he avoided looking down at the lilac haired tempter. Too many thoughts about what he should and shouldn't do were brewing in his mind, making it impossible for him to even consider thinking straight.

"I like you, Zexion," Lexaeus finally blurted out. "I really like you."

Zexion just smirked, succeeding in getting an answer out from him. He accomplished his goal for the day and felt that he deserved a little prize for that. "I like you too, Lexaeus," Zexion said, lowering his hand so that it touched the other hand. "I just wanted to make sure that you were the first one to say so."

A smile crept up Lexaeus's face as he turned so that they were both facing each other now. Zexion just stared at him, waiting for him to do something or at least show the sign of any movement. He was too nervous to move though. He was completely paralyzed by his uncertainties that Zexion was the one who had to initiate the kiss.

Zexion got on the tips of his toes, pressing his lips against Lexaeus's. Even though it was cold outside, the kiss seemed to break through the frozen weather and warmed them both right up. Lexaeus soon found his body willing to move so he wound his arms around his waist. He pressed them both so tightly together that it actually felt like they were one person for a moment.

And for a moment, Lexaeus's world felt so right, but all good things always come crashing down without a moment's notice.

"Lexaeus!" roared a deep, manly voice.

Fear and adrenaline began to pump through Lexaeus's body as he immediately released Zexion from his hold. He barely uttered the words to run when he snapped his body back to block a fist that was coming straight for his head. Zexion yelped as he jumped back, wondering just what the hell was going on. It took only a second for him to connect the thoughts when he saw the striking similarities between the violent man and Lexaeus.

"Dad, stop!" Lexaeus said, pushing his father back.

"I should've known!" his father roared. "I should've known my son was a no good faggot! I told your mother all the time, but she kept telling me I was just being paranoid!"

The man swung another fist after Lexaeus, which this time he couldn't block. Lexaeus went down hard and fast, crashing into the bed of snow. His father took advantage of this as he jumped on top of him and mindlessly began to beat Lexaeus until he was black and blue all over. He kept repeating that he wasn't having a fag for a son and that Lexaeus was better off to him dead now where he wouldn't cause any trouble for him.

The beating continued even as Zexion yelled at the phone for the police to show. Panic began to grow on his face as he barely saw Lexaeus fighting back now, which only meant he was losing this nasty fight. He hung up his phone and dropped it on the ground as he tried to do something to stop Lexaeus's father. He jumped on the man's back and bit at his neck since he always remembered that worked whenever he fought Terra growing up.

The bite seemed to have the same affects on the grown man. It didn't exactly yield the end the fight results he had been expecting through. Zexion released the man at the wrong time, receiving an elbow on his face before he went tumbling off him and his forearm crashed into a rock that was hidden by the snow. Everything went hazy then dark for Zexion after that point, but it wasn't a complete waist.

Lexaeus managed to get enough breathing room to punch his father in the throat, forcing him to get off. He struggled to get at least back on his knees so he could punch the man again with his fist landing on his dad's nose this time. He got him against in the ribs, which he made sure to hit extra hard and twice just for Zexion.

His father fell back into the snow, grabbing onto his probably fractured ribs. "Fucking faggot!" he shouted. "You're not my fucking son anymore! Don't you fucking dare come back to the house now. I'll fucking kill you, you hear me, boy! I'm going to fucking kill you!"

"Fuck you," Lexaeus said, spitting out blood. "It's not like I really need you in the first place."

The broken youth made his way to an unconscious Zexion, seeing the blood in the snow. He felt even more rage for his father building up when he saw a decent cut on Zexion's forehead. So he quickly took Zexion up in his arms just as the sirens began to go off, alerting him that the cops were on their way.

* * *

"Zexion!"

Terra went flying through the hospital, yelling his brother's name after just getting the call about what happened to him. He couldn't even remember if he clocked out from work nor did he bother asking Squall even though the man was running right after him. They got Zexion's room number from a nurse and proceeded to run down the hall like madmen with Squall trying to say things to calm the inferno that was going off in Terra's heart.

They finally made it to the room at the end of the hall. Lexaeus was standing outside with bandages covering his face. His right eye was swollen black, no doubt from the right hook that his dad gave him, but Terra and Squall didn't know the story yet. Squall simply hissed at the broken looking youth before saying that this was a wonderful way to start the winter vacation.

Terra paid neither one any of his attention as he ran into the room. Zack and Aerith were there with Sora hiding in his mother's arms. Terra didn't pay much attention to them too as he looked down at the bed to see Zexion with a bandage over his head, a split lip, and a cast on his left arm. At that point, Terra never wanted to kill someone as badly as then. Not even Vanitas could provoke such a wrath from him, this was his blood, this was his baby brother that some monster attacked.

"How is he?" Terra asked with his voice cracking.

"Doctor Ross says he has a broken arm and some bruising on his face," Aerith told him. "He's unconscious right now, but he also has a concussion, which is something they're worrying about. That can't tell how serve it is since he's…"

"I get it," Terra said, weakly. "What the hell happened to him though? Zack didn't explain anything to me."

"I kissed him," Lexaeus said as Squall guided him back into the room. Squall had a gentle hand on the young man's back, while Lexaeus shuffled in and hold onto his arm like it was dead. "My dad caught us and proceeded to beat the hell out of me. Zexion tried to stop him, but my dad attacked him then I kicked his ass and got kicked out in the process."

Terra found himself glaring at Lexaeus, almost wanting to hit him at that point. He had to tell himself though that it wasn't Lexaeus's fault that his brother was hurt. "Your dad did this?" he said, confirming what he heard. His fist started to tighten into a tight ball as he slowly turned back to see that Zexion still wasn't conscious. "I'm going to kill him then."

"You and me both," said Lexaeus.

"Nobody's killing anybody," Zack said, running interference. "We need to discuss our options with the police. We'll press charges against and let the legal system take care of the rest. And Lexaeus, you can stay with us until we figured out a permanent place for you."

"No offense, Uncle Zack," said Terra, "but shut the hell up. How would you feel if somebody did this to your son? What if Riku's dad did this to Sora since, you know, that's his 'boyfriend'!"

"Riku's daddy loves me!" Sora said, speaking up for himself. "He wouldn't hit me!"

"Hush sweetie," Aerith said to her son. "Terra didn't mean it like that."

Zack and Squall had to hold Terra down before he charged out of the hospital room to put Lexaeus's dad in a body bag. Lexaeus couldn't really go anywhere yet since he was in too much pain and the pills the doctor gave him were slowly wearing off. Squall kept a good hold on Terra's shoulders, making sure that he kept sitting down. Zack went out the door to see if the police had arrived yet, while Terra just continued to fume with rage.

"What did I miss?" said a soft voice.

Everybody looked at the bed and saw that Zexion had opened his eyes just in time to see himself in a hospital.

* * *

Ventus was in shock as he listened to everything that Terra was telling him, over the phone. It pained him to hear that Zexion was attacked by Lexaeus's father after they were caught kissing, which was a big shocker to him since he thought Lexaeus was straight. He was sad that he couldn't physically be there for Terra right now, considering everything that Terra went through for him. Right now though, he needed to focus on bigger trouble as he stood outside the courtroom door with his cell phone pressed to his ear.

"Is Zexion awake yet?" Ven asked.

"Yeah," said Terra. "The doctor said that he has a mild concussion now so we need to keep an eye on him. I guess Lexaeus is staying with us since his dad went all psycho and threatened to kill him if he ever saw him again. Oh, best part, Zexion won't stop crying about his phone since he dropped it during the fight. The boy could've been killed, but all he cares about is his Blackberry."

"That's Zexion for you," laughed Ven. "I guess I'll see you tonight then, babe. I'll be there as soon as I finish this court stuff. I love you."

"Alright baby," Terra said, softly. "I love you too. Tell Roxas to kick him in the shin for me. Bye."

Ven only shook his head at his boyfriend before saying bye back at him. He hung up his phone and turned to the giant doors that were placed in front of him. He gave out a soft sigh as he opened them and returned to the courtroom, wearing a nice looking suit.

The lawyer that was representing him was already waiting for him to come back in. They walked back together were a small audience was gathered, mostly of law students learning the tools of trade, and a few reporters. A couple of cops were present, there was a jury of his "peers", a mean looking judge, and Ven's family were all there that included Vanitas.

Ven and his lawyer took their seat the front with the blond avoiding making eye contact with his rapist brother. Vanitas sat at the other table, wearing a suit with a city lawyer at his side and a big cop behind them both. Vanitas bore a murderous look on his face as he glared at Ventus just as the case was about to resume.

"Will the jury present their verdict, please," said the judge.

"Yes, your honor," said the heard juror. "We, the jury, find Vanitas Hart guilty of all his charges against Ventus Hart. We deny his plea for insanity and ask for a minimum sentence of thirty years in prison with no bail."

The judge nodded his head as he closed the file on his podium. "Alright. By the State of New Jersey, I pronounce you, Vanitas Hart, guilty and allow this minimum sentence of thirty years with a maximum of life. Case closed."

A sigh of relief escaped Ventus's mouth as he held back the joy in his heart. Vanitas would get thirty years to possibly a lifelong sentence in jail! That meant he would almost certainly never have to deal with him again, which was something great to hear. It almost restored his faith in everything as his lawyer congratulated Ventus for the good results.

Not everyone was happy to hear this though.

Vanitas was fuming mad as the cop started to remove him from court. He wasn't about to allow it to end there as he started to yell at Ventus and his family at the top of his lungs. "I'll get you all back for this!" he shouted. "This isn't the end of this! I'll get you back! I swear to God that I'll get you back, especially your stupid boyfriend, Ventus!"

More cops started to run after Vanitas he fought the other cops for freedom. He tried to break the cuffs on his wrists, which was a fairly stupid thing to do with all those cops there. They all worked together to restrain Vanitas, who wouldn't give up trying to break free from the cops.

Roxas just got up, laughing at Vanitas as he was knocked down by a couple of cops. He leaned over the railing and just looked down at his psychotic, dumbass of a brother. "Yeah, this isn't helping your cause, buddy," he said, sounding very calm. "You're so getting the lifetime sentence now."

"Fuck you, Roxas!" shouted Vanitas.

"Love you too," Roxas said, mocking him.

His parents told him to behave, while Ventus just smiled knowing that Roxas had his back.

* * *

Sephiroth sat at the bar of the closed diner with his legs crossed and his back against the counter. He didn't need to be told of what Cloud had been doing with Squall since he was like God, he was all-knowing. He had been watching what Cloud's been doing for a while now and caught the kiss that sealed their fate.

"You know Squall Leonhart will never love you," said Sephiroth. "He's getting married this weekend and will forget that you even exist once he fucks his bride's pussy. Why would he take a little whore like you when he can get a virgin?"

Cloud sat on top of a table across from Sephiroth with his eyes holding back tears. This was worse than anything Sephiroth put him through. He could deal with the physical abuse, the brutal sex, and the being left used up like a prostitute. This wasn't something else though, he couldn't deal with all this emotional abuse that was tarring away at his psyche.

"You don't know anything, Sephiroth," Cloud finally blurted out. "Squall likes me. He doesn't want to marry her, he's being forced into marrying her by his family. He won't be happy with her just like I've never been happy being with you!"

The fire in Cloud's words left Sephiroth smiling as he stood from the stool. He made his approach and touched Cloud's face with a single hand. "If you truly believe that, Cloud, then you should put your money with your mouth is," he said, calmly. "If Squall would really rather be with you, but can't because of his family then that means you must save him."

"I'll make you a wager," Sephiroth said, leaning towards him. "You go to the wedding and when the priest asks for any objections, you object. If Squall goes to you after that then I'll leave and be nothing more than a memory. You'll see or hear from me again, but if he stays with his bride then you're mine forever…or until I get bored with you. That seems fair, no? So, what do you say, Cloud?"

"It's a deal," Cloud said without even the slightest bit of hesitation.

He knew that he could get Squall to run off with him at the wedding, this was only chance to be free.


	11. Love is a Battlefield

Author's Note: Well, here is probably the last update until after Christmas. I'm going away on vacation so there is no guarantee that you'll get more updates. I'm going to finish the story pretty soon though, I'm trying to type it out faster then I'm updating. There are only three more chapters left, just so you're aware. So read and review everyone! Hope to see some lovely reviews for this chapter and all the other ones! :] P.S. there is a minor lemon in the end. haha. Just so you know.

"**Love is a Battlefield" by Pat Benatar:**

**This is me**

**We are young, heartache to heartache we stand,  
****No promises, no demands love is a battlefield,  
****Woah, we are strong, ****no one can tell us we're wrong,  
****Searching our hearts for so long, both of us knowing,  
****Love is a battlefield.**

**

* * *

**

The couch bed was actually a little more comfortable then he expected it to be during his stay with the Fair family. Lexaeus found himself in the care of Zack and his family until a permanent solution could be fixed for him. Considering what happened the other day, Zack was able to get Lexaeus legally in his care until a permanent home could be fixed for him. Even that was a long shot though since Lexaeus was turning eighteen in January, making the hunt for a foster home rather pointless.

It was decided that Lexaeus would stay with the Fair family until he found a place of his own after graduation, of course. His mother was kind enough to send some of his things to him and drop his car off, while his father was busy at work. She wasn't totally accepting of her son's lifestyle, but she wasn't about to completely cut him out from her life. She just knew that being around him wouldn't be a good idea since her husband was on the warpath.

At least he knew that somebody was on his side during this ordeal. Lexaeus was transferring out of Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow for Alpha High School. He would finish there since his temporary, foster family couldn't afford his private school any longer. He was just happy to have a roof over his head, since he was so certain that he was going to be living out in the streets on this exceptionally cold winter.

The most important thing though was that Zexion was safe. He recovered from his concussion quickly enough, which was a joy to everyone, but his arm would remain broken for another two months. Zexion was learning to live with the cast and used his handicap to his advantage to play Terra and Lexaeus like they were his slaves. Terra wasn't as tolerant as Lexaeus was since it was "technically" his fault that this all happened anyways.

He was happy with the end results at least. He was free from his father's hold so that meant he could be the type of person he wanted to be. Zexion didn't hate him even after what happened at the park, which was a Christmas miracle to him. The best part of it though was that night, Zexion creeped down to the basement to crawl into the couch bed that Lexaeus was sleeping on.

Lexaeus felt the rough cast rubbing against the light stubble that was growing on his face. He groaned like a bear as he tried to push it away, but Zexion was relentless as he began to poke him with his non-broken arm. It took a while of playing with him, but Lexaeus eventually opened his eyes to see Zexion kneeling on the cheap mattress.

"What are you doing?" said Lexaeus. "It's like one in the morning."

"I couldn't sleep," siad Zexion. "Sora chose this night to stay in the room with me and…he snores like a whale. I was hoping that his Man Mountain didn't snore."

"Not fun, and why does he call me that anyways?" Lexaeus said, groaning from his rude awakening. Zexion shrugged his shoulders as he sat down on the mattress "So, are you going to bunk with Terra then? I think he snuck out to see Ventus around midnight though."

"Kinda figured," Zexion said, curling into a ball on the couch. The room was fairly insulated so it wasn't that cold, plus they had a nice heater in the corner. This was the family room after all, which meant that it needed to be warm for the colder weather. "I was wondering if I could stay with you, tonight."

That really got Lexaeus to wake up as he pushed himself up from the pillow he was resting on. The blanket that he had covering him fell off a little to show off his large and bronzed muscles to the smaller boy. "Really?" he said, shocked that he suggested it. "Are you sure about that? I thought you wouldn't want anything to do with me considering what happened with my…dad."

"It's not like you that was going to happen, and you didn't do this to me," Zexion said, softly. "Plus, I still like you and I'd like to sleep in the same bed as you tonight."

"Alright then," Lexaeus said, pulling the blanket up so that Zexion could crawl in.

Zexion wore a thin t-shirt with a pair of shorts that cut off around his thighs, while Lexaeus was shirtless and wore only his boxers. Zexion rested on his side with his back pressed against Lexaeus's chest so he didn't sleep on his broken arm. He fit perfectly against Lexaeus's side as they spooned, sharing a single pillow with the blanket drapped over them.

A smile crept up Lexaeus's face as he never dreamt of a more perfect moment then this. He never dreamed having a beautiful boy like Zexion in his arms, sleeping soundly in the cold night. It was poetic and moving that it just took his breath away for a moment.

"I love you," Lexaeus whispered without even thinking about what he said.

"I love you too," Zexion mumbled before drifting completely off to sleep.

Lexaeus was even more breathless as he too fell asleep.

* * *

The following day was full of chaos as they tried to get ready for the terrible wedding of Squall Leonhart and Rinoa Heartily. Everyone in the Fair house was mindlessly running around to finish getting ready before they raced off to the church. Zexion was still nervous about going and so was Lexaeus, but Zack assured them that they would be fine. Zack thought they were concerned about their safety from Lexaeus's wacko father, not the budding relationship that was blooming between the two.

As they arrived to the church, Terra found himself still standing outside shortly before the ceremony began. He was waiting for Ventus to show up since his parents were supposed to be dropping them off. Apparently, they were friends with the bride, while Terra's boss is the groom. Ven was going to show up with his family and met up to sit with Terra for the beautiful ceremony that would be.

Terra stood outside, looking very dashing in his Kenneth Cole suit that Zexion helped pick out from him at Macy's. Zack was dressed up in a black tuxedo since he was the best man, while Aerith wore a cute dress that went well with what Zack wore. Sora looked simply adorable in the little suit he was wearing that Aerith was trying to prevent him from dirtying up. Zexion was dressed a little more dashing in a Calvin Klein inspired outfit, which really rocked the cast he was wearing.

"Hurry Ven," Terra said. "The wedding starts in like ten minutes."

It wasn't much longer that Terra saw the car that Ven's dad drove pull up into the parking lot. A sigh escaped him as he practically bolted to the car to get his hands on Ven. What he saw though left him completely breathless. Ven was dressed up in a tight, fitted suit that hugged every inch of his body just right with a blue tie that brought out his eyes with a white shirt underneath the gray coat he wore. A smile formed on Ven's lips as he made his way over to Terra and kissed his boyfriend on the lips.

"Hi," Ven said, happily.

"Hey, yourself," Terra said, smiling. "You look amazing."

"Thanks," Ven said, waving his family off. He took Terra's hand and they slowly made their way to the church, while his family followed behind. He broke hand contact with him before they entered the church since the good Catholic folk weren't that fond of man-on-man public display of affection. "Don't you just find weddings to be romantic?"

"Very romantic," siad Terra, "and expensive."

"I can't wait until my wedding," Ven siad, softly.

Terra nodded his head a little as they took a seat in the back. He almost missed what Ventus said until he replayed that sentence again in his mind. "Wait, what wedding?" Terra said, sounding startled. "What wedding are you talking about? Who are you marrying? Are you talking about our wedding?"

Ven just laughed quietly so that they wouldn't draw too much attention to themselves. He brushed his gelled bang back to the side before glancing over at the end of the aisle to see all the white, rose petals littering the ground. "That's for me to know and you to find out," he said, cheerfully. "Who knows, I just might make a good husband out of you."

"I would be a great husband," Terra said, leaning as close as he could to him before kissing Ven square on the lips.

The two stayed like that until a sharp cough interrupted them, leaving Terra to spend the next ten minutes arguing with some old couple about gays burning in Hell, while Ven just sat there feeling a little uncomfortable until Terra finally won the argument.

* * *

It was almost time the dreadful ceremony to begin.

Squall stood at the front of the church with the black tuxedo on that Rinoa had picked out for him that his dad paid for. Everyone thought that the nervous jitters he was having was for the wedding since he would be off the market. If only they knew how wrong they were. He couldn't bear to spend the rest of his life with this woman, trapped in a never-ending hell that would last him until the day they died.

The wedding needed to be stopped, but he couldn't be the one to directly do it. He needed to make it drastic and spontaneous like it wasn't planned at all. Fuck being disowned from his family and losing his job, at this point Squall didn't give a damn about anything but his sanity. If this wedding wasn't called off then he was going to be forced to spend the rest of his life with this vile woman.

Not that she was the Devil incarnate or anything, but they were so obviously wrong for each other. Rinoa was too blinded with the prospect of marriage that she was giving herself up so easily to Squall, which was so wrong. She was too needy and controlling over everything that Squall would never find happiness with this woman, no matter how hard he tried. The wedding needed to be called off for both of their sakes so that the two of them could one day be with somebody that they truly cared about.

Like Cloud…

Squall looked around the crowd of people, hoping to see those familiar spikes of blond hair. He was hoping to see Cloud there, the young man that he was beginning to fall in love with. Yes, he had completely submitted himself to the fact that he did love Cloud. It was painfully obvious to him now that he fell hard and fast for Cloud, but he was unable to admit that fact to him because he was a total idiot and too busy scheming out of a marriage to notice that.

And now who knows if he would ever get that chance to be with Cloud Strife. The wedding was only two minutes away from beginning, scratch that. Squall spent so much time with all this inner conflict that he failed to see that it was time for the wedding to start…NOW!

The music was playing and the audience had stood up to welcome the blushing bride. For a moment, Squall's heart completely stopped as he realized that this was going to happen. There was no way he was going to get out of this marriage and that he would be forced to spend the rest of his human life with the woman who made him miserable. The crushing weight started to pin him down to the ground as he realized just how hopeless this all was and just how screwed he was.

There was no way he was going to find his freedom.

He was going to be married to Rinoa Heartily, on this day.

Squall Leonhart was just going to have to accept that fact and learn to become completely dependent on alcohol to mend his pain.

If only, if only, Cloud would've been there to save him from this cruel fate.

* * *

When Cloud finally made it to the wedding, he found that it had already began and his fate was almost sealed. He was hardly dressed for such a special occasion since he was dressed in a wrinkly pair of slacks and a shirt that wasn't tucked in with the tie hanging down. Dressing up like this wasn't his deal and it wasn't like he was there to really impress anyone there anyways. He was only there to save Squall from this sham of a wedding so that neither one had to suffer spending the rest of their lives with someone they didn't love.

He stood at the very back of the church since there wasn't a single seat left. That didn't matter to him though because he was on a mission and didn't need to sit down. He just gulped as he listened to how far this wedding got, hoping that he wasn't too late to stop it all.

"There is still time, Cloud." Sephiroth was leaning against the wall, wearing one of his work suits to church. His silver hair was actually tied into a long ponytail so that it didn't get all over the place. He pointed at Squall and Rinoa, showing that they were still holding hands. "You can still end the whole thing. All you need to do is wait for the priest to say the line. If Squall goes to you then I go away, forever. But you know what will happen if he doesn't."

"Yeah," Cloud said, softly. "I'm stuck with your crazy ass."

"I'm crazy, but you like it," Sephiroth laughed.

And so the wait began, which was driving Cloud completely crazy. They were already standing there for twenty minutes since they were going for the longer, traditional wedding. Damn Rinoa for being such a traditional girl, Cloud didn't doubt her virginity now. He was glad that Squall never touched her sexually since he would probably catch her analness like a STD.

Time seemed to go slower as Cloud waited for the perfect moment to say his objection to this unholy union. The priest was taking his sweet time though to say something, which was driving him completely bonkers. He had to stop this from going any further then it was. He was almost losing all his patience as he planned to just say something now.

But Sephiroth kept his hold on Cloud, telling him to remain quiet like a mouse for now.

Nobody noticed Cloud who was practically itching at the seams. He was jumping out of his skin, ready to stop this wedding and save the man that he loved from a cruel fate. He was going to save them both so that they could be together, forever. With any luck, Squall would want to marry him and spend every moment of their lives together, even after death they would find a way to be better.

It would be simply perfect, at least that's how Cloud thought it would be.

"Say it," Sephiroth said, pushing Cloud forward. "Say it now or forever hold you peace."

"Is there anyone who would object to this union?" the priest said, loudly. "Is there anyone who has any objections to this union, speak now or forever hold your peace."

Cloud swallowed all the nerves that were building up in his chest as he slowly walked forward. He reached the last row of chairs before finally getting the courage to speak out in front of everyone there. "I object!" he shouted, loud enough for everyone to hear. "I object to this union! The bride and groom aren't in love with each other. Squall doesn't love Rinoa, and Rinoa is only settling for Squall. And, Squall is in love with someone else who loves him very much. I'm in love with Squall!"

It was like a soap opera because the drama was so good. Terra and Ventus had the perfect seat to see all of this display, both the boys wishing they had some popcorn on them. Lexaeus had his jaw dangling, while Zexion just wished he had a pencil to scratch himself with. Zack was wide-eyed, Aerith was covering Sora's ears because she didn't want to give him anymore ideas, and Rinoa actually fainted at that moment. For a moment, everyone's attention was focused solely on Rinoa and not on Cloud.

And it was then that Squall took advantage of this opportunity and left Rinoa at the altar. He ran down the aisle to where Cloud standing, running up to wrap his arms around the blond and brought their lips together. Joy burned within Cloud's being as he tugged onto Squall so that he was closer to him. There was no denying the happiness that had welcomed them both, ending this horrible wedding that was about to happen.

"I knew you'd come through in the end," Squall said, ending the kiss.

"I'm surprised I actually did this," Cloud said, laughing a little. "I feel really stupid."

"You're not though," Squall said, kissing him again so that the people watching them gasped in shock.

Squall then took Cloud's hand and the two ran out of the church. Squall didn't look back at the altar to see that Rinoa had regain consciousness, but Cloud caught sight of Sephiroth. He just nodded his head at Cloud before turning away like he never knew him. It was finally over, Cloud couldn't believe it.

They were both free from their loveless relationships to be with someone who truly cared for them.

It was a miracle!

* * *

It was insane!

That was easily the best wedding that either one had ever been to. Zexion and Lexaeus had found the wedding to be shocking, while they strolled down the pier at the end that nobody ever went to. They could hear the crashing waters of the ocean as they talked about how Squall ran off with Cloud to who knew where. Rinoa was left mortified by all of this, while Squall's family was feuding with Rinoa's about what happened.

Zexion was holding onto Lexaeus's hand, while they sat by the railing, looking out to sea. It was amusing to them to see the soothing waters as they tried to think about their relationship. They tried to figure out their status and just how ready they were for everything that was going on between them.

"So we're dating now?" asked Lexaeus.

"That's what it seems like," said Zexion. "It feels like something more though. Now that I got over my gay issues, I feel like there is something more between us."

"Like the whole I love you confession we had last night?"

"Like that," said Zexion.

A smile crept up Lexaeus's face as he asked Zexion how far he was willing to test that. Zexion laughed as he slowly began to get on his feet, tugging onto Lexaeus's arm in the process. He said something about finding someplace private for them that didn't smell like fish before running off towards an empty shack. It was fortunate for them that the door was unlocked and the place didn't smell like fish.

Lexaeus remembered hearing about this place from Xaldin when the year began. He told Zexion that this was the famous "Hook-Up Shack" that senior guys took their girlfriends to have sex. It was kept clean by everyone since it was always stocked with cleaning products and miracousloy always had a pair of clean sheets. Nobody knew who did this, but most of the guys figured there was pervert who got off watching them fuck their girls so he kept up with the place.

"This doesn't feel right to me," said Lexaeus. "I think we should probably leave."

"I don't think it's that bad," Zexion said, looking at the empty shack. There wasn't much there, but there was a mat with a couple of blankets. Everything smelt clean to him and he was really feeling a little frisky at the moment. He turned over to Lexaeus, still feeling the romantic buzz from the wedding that didn't happen. "This place actually seems pretty good. I think we should see how far things takes us, if you want?"

"Are you sure about this place, Zexion?" asked Lexaeus. "I don't want us to do anything that doesn't feel right."

Zexion didn't say a word to him, he just kissed to tell him how sure he was. Lexaeus returned the kiss as he wrapped his arms around Zexion and felt a strange warmth burn up inside of him despite it being so cold outside. They slowly began to undo the suits they were wearing and stripped down until they wore nothing. The cold kept seeping into the building, but neither one cared as they clung onto one another for warmth.

Lexaeus whispered into his ear, speaking about how beautiful he was. A smile crept up Zexion's face as he wrapped himself around his body with their privates against each other. They found themselves on top of the mat and Lexaeus threw a blanket over them so that they would at least be warm. Despite all the cold that was sweeping in the shack, they managed to stay warm together with heated kisses being exchanged between the two.

The heat that grew between the two of them was off the charts as they grew with to full erections. Lexaeus kept most of his weight off of Zexion so that he didn't crush him. Zexion made sure that he kept his broken arm off to the side so that it didn't get injured all the more during this moment of passion. They kept kissing each other, with pre-cum leaking out of them. Their body contact was enough to get them both leaking enough so that their pre-cum made them both perfectly slick.

Zexion had his legs wrapped around Lexaeus's waist now, nodding his head to confirm it. Lexaeus wasn't sure about going right in since he was sporting seven and a half inches of manhood. It wasn't something that could be taken lightly since he knew he could do some damage to Zexion's insides with it.

They took the time to prepare him so that it wouldn't hurt as much. Lexaeus had his fingers moving inside of Zexion, providing him with a little more pleasure mixed with pain. Zexion was still fairly loose from all the times with Marluxia in the past, but it had been long enough that he forgot what it was like to have something inside of him. The way that Lexaeus was treating him magical as it made him moan and groan, begging Lexaeus for more.

So when Lexaeus finally inserted his length inside of him, Zexion quickly began to see stars as they made love in this tiny shack, in the middle of winter.

It was just perfect for them both, they were finally with somebody they loved..


	12. A Year Without Rain

Author's Note: Here is another exciting chapter for all you kids! It's a little heart-breaking at the end, but it starts off so pretty! Hope you guys like it. Read and review.

"**A Year Without Rain" by Selena Gomez and the Scene:**

**Oooooooooooh**

**Can you feel me when I think about you,  
With every breath I take,**

**Every minute no matter what I do,  
My world is an empty place.**

**

* * *

**

It was amazing to be free after being trapped in a desert of hate for so long. Depression had flown passed him and he no longer needed to feel that he was living a loveless life. Ventus was at long last free to embrace his life with Terra, both feeling free from the shackles of their oppression. They were both relieved to see how far they've come in the last couple of months since Ventus's nightmares finally came to an end.

Spring was in full bloom; ending winter's chill to bring back life to outside world.

Ventus was lying on his stomach, on top of a patch of grass with his legs up in the air as they lounged around at his backyard. He rested his head on his hands as he kept his eyes locked on Terra who was busy studying for his philosophy final. Ven found himself captivated by every breath that Terra took, with the way he turned the pages of his notes, and simply the way he hunched over with that puzzled look on his face as he tried to remember what he wrote down. The best part about any of this was how normal it felt and just how right the world around them seemed to be.

Nature was in perfect harmony with everything. There was nothing that troubled their lives since all their problems seemed to melt away just as the snow melted from the ground. Ventus's heart was fluttering with joy as he embraced just how perfect everything had become. Vanitas was gone from his life, Terra got his own job at a bank so they were able to spend more time together, and they were both thinking about starting a bad together. It would be just the two of them since Terra knew almost how to play every instrument on Earth, while Ventus could sing and just play piano.

"I was thinking of a name for the band," Ven suddenly announced. "I feel a little inspired by Zooey Deschanel's band, She & Him. We could be like Him & Me or something like that."

"So long as it isn't a Sonny and Cher thing, I'm totally happy," Terra said, taking his eyes off his notes long enough to focus on his boyfriend. "Not that they were bad or anything, but I kind of don't want to get a divorce then die at a ski accident."

"But you don't want me to sing a song like 'Believe'?" Ventus asked, resting his head on Terra's binder. Well, that was a little uncomfortable and needed to go. He pushed the binder aside so that he could use Terra's lap with his hand touching Terra's rock, hard abs. "I always found Cher to be a little inspiring. She's like her own institution. She was Lady Gaga before Lady Gaga was even born. Heck, she's the original Madonna!"

Terra started to laugh as he placed both his hands on his gay, little boyfriend's face. He brushed the smooth face with his fingertips before leaning in to kiss his forehead. "I get it, babe," he said, calmly. "You are just so gay sometimes. It amazes me, but I found it to be sexy nonetheless because you will always be the bottom and I'll be the top!"

Ven started to laugh as little as he nuzzled his face against Terra. He buried it in Terra's stomach, while Terra gave up on studying so he could focus his attention solely on his needy boyfriend. "Babe, I got you, babe!" Ven sang to Terra.

"Let's not go there, Ven," Terra said, covering Ven's mouth. "How about we sing something else? Something a little more modern with a pop/rock beat?"

"Well, I have been working on a song!" Ven said, cheerfully. "Do you want to hear it?"

"If gets you to stop singing Sonny and Cher, yeah!" Terra said, laughing.

Ven pushed his boyfriend down on the grass as he got up. Terra kept laughing at him, though, he was a little mad that he pushed him so rudely. Ven just said he deserved it as he got up on his feet so he could give Terra a little performance. He didn't remember half of the lyrics, which probably wasn't a good thing since he needed Terra to take him seriously.

Terra was waiting for Ven to start, sitting up now. He had one arm resting on his knee, while the other helped to support his sitting position. There was a cheery grin on his face as he waited for Ven to start singing, wondering just what the boy had up his sleeve. He really did wonder what Ven was going to sing for him since his voice was always better off suited for something soft, but powerful.

Neither one had to wait much longer as Ven finally remembered the first, verse of the song.

"I only knew the dark, never knowing the light outside these four walls. And there I was, sitting alone in the dark, watching you from far away. You were the one. You were the boy who'd take me away. But I was too afraid, afraid to stray from the dark. Too scared to move an inch. I was too scared to move towards you. I was petrified by my own depression. But you were on a mission to save my soul."

Ven dropped to his knees after that and fell towards Terra. He gave out a soft sigh as he ran his hand though his blond hairs with the sun bouncing off his soft flesh. "So what did you think?" he asked his boyfriend. "You can be honest and tell me that it sucks. I think it kind of sucks, in a way. It sounded totally better in my head, but when I actually started to sing it…it just sounded so choppy and pathetic!"

He was cut off before he could continue rambling about how bad of a song it was.

Terra had gotten hold of the back of Ven's head then brought their lips together in less than a second. Ven was so much in shock that his lips that he couldn't even process what was going on at the moment. Terra kept their lips together though as he slowly brought Ven closer to him so that he could wrap his arms around him.

Ven began to relax at that point, giving in to the kiss. He sat himself down on Terra's lap and gave into the rough lips that made him feel loved and desired. Terra's hands rested on Ven's slim waist as the blond began to grind his backside to excite Terra a little. This got them both excited, which went against Ven's plan of enticing his boyfriend.

"I like the song," Terra said, finally pulling his lips away from him. "We just need to work on it a little more then I believe it will become a smash. We'll make Taylor Swift look like a wackjob who just keeps complaining about all the crappy guys that she's dated."

"Isn't that what she does already?" Ven laughed, softly.

"True," said Terra.

They both fell on the ground with Ven lying on top of Terra's chest. Ven had his arms lock around Terra's neck, while Terra continued to rest his hands on Ventus's waist. They both bore smiles on their faces as they thought about all the many things they could do with the rest of their lives. It was a random thought, but it was something that they both knew they could look forward too since they knew they were perfect for each other.

It would be just Terra and Ventus, forever.

* * *

Everything seemed to be going just fine for Squall and Cloud now that they were finally free from their old lives. Sephiroth was but a memory, Squall's family disowned him, and Rinoa left town because she was embarrassed by what happened at her not-wedding. Squall didn't care about any of that, he was just happy that he was finally with somebody that he actually liked. As for Cloud, he was simply ecstatic to be with someone who loved him and didn't want to control him like a puppet.

After everything that happened, Squall moved into Cloud's apartment and started to work at the diner until he found an appropriate job. That seemed to be a little difficult since pretty much everyone in town was Team Rinoa so there wasn't much hope for him. If he was going to have any chance at finding a real job then he was going to need to expand his search from outside this crackpot of a town.

But on a happier subject, Cloud and Squall spent their day together in bed. There was a stitch of clothing on either one as they hid their nudity underneath the bedcovers. Squall was mercilessly attacking Cloud's lips with his hand cupping the blond's perfect ass. Cloud was groaning against Squall's body, while he pushed their lips together and took hold of Squall's lengthy erection. In between breaths, they both panted and groaned with pleasure as they pushed their naked bodies closer together.

Squall laid Cloud flat on his back now, slowly kissing him down to his groin. He tweaked the pert nipples with his tongue before trailing down further south to the excitement that brewed between Cloud's legs. The brunet began to tease the dick with the tip of his tongue before going down to take all of it down his throat like a pro. Cloud arched his back up as he felt a pleasant sensation and warmth build all around his body. Cloud's skin felt so tingly as Squall gave him the best blow job of his life.

That's when he felt a finger slid underneath him and began to enter his ass. That made the tingling sensation grow stronger, bringing Cloud closer to a climax that he didn't want to reach yet. He didn't want to cum before the main event could begin so he bit down on his tongue and held it back for as long as he could. The intrusion of Squall's fingers inside of him brought so much pleasure to him as Squall prepared him for the coming show.

Everything stopped for a moment, which made Cloud cry out at the need to be filled. Squall didn't disappoint him as he easily slid inside of Cloud now, both of them feeling a great deal of pleasure. Cloud moaned as Squall's dick penetrated his ass, while Squall felt the warm muscles clench around his length. It felt incredible as Cloud's toes curled as Squall went deeper inside of him.

They were both in nirvana once they finally reached their climax at the same time.

Cloud was panting and sweating like a dog as Squall fell beside him, behaving in a similar manner. The blue-eyed men were staring at the ceiling for a moment as they recovered from the hot sex they just had. They were both floating high in the clouds, embracing the sexual bliss that came in the afterglow of their intimacy. Cloud rested against Squall, while his brunet lover had an arm draped over his shoulder.

And this was how they shared many of their days, living in a life of bliss.

At least, until Squall let some words slip from his mouth.

"I'm so glad that you stopped the wedding," said Squall. "I don't know what I would've done if I had to marry Rinoa."

"I'm glad too," said Cloud. "I never thought I would do it, but I really wanted to be with you and I knew you'd be miserable with her."

"Extremely miserable!" Squall corrected him. "I'm so glad my plan worked."

Cloud picked his head up, wondering just what he meant by plan. That was certainly something odd to say since he didn't understood how there could've been a plan involved. "What do you mean by your plan?" asked the blond. "Did you plan for me to stop the wedding?"

"In a way," Squall confessed, not realizing the uncharted territory he was treading in. "I figured that if I got you to fall in love with me then you'd stop the wedding."

"You used me then?" Cloud said, pulling away from Squall. He pushed himself so that he was sitting up as he processed everything Squall just said. It was like a punch in the gut, Squall practically confessed that he was just using him to stop the wedding. Now that he thought about it, he never even heard Squall say that he loved him. It was all just a ruse. "You were using me…you're no better than Sephiroth."

Squall hadn't heard that name in ages, which suddenly made him realize what he just said. He pulled himself up from the bed and tried to apologize to Cloud when a hand swatted him away. Cloud's eyes were filled with hateful tears as he jumped out of the bed, not caring that he looked like a complete mess.

"Get out!" Cloud said, angrily. "I want you to get your stuff and get the fuck out of my home."

"Cloud, you don't mean that," Squall said, trying to crawl towards him. He held his hand out in hopes of taking Cloud's again, only to have his hand pushed away again. Cloud held no mercy for him in his eyes as he slowly made his way to the wall to get away. "Please Cloud. I didn't mean it like that. I wasn't trying to use you. You know that I care about you."

"Right, you care about me only because I was dumb enough to fall for your game!" Cloud shouted at him. "What are you still doing here, Squall? Get the fuck out of my house, now!"

"Cloud!"

"GET OUT!"

After Cloud shouted nearly at the top of his lungs, he stormed off to the bathroom and slammed the door behind him. Squall knew that there was no calming him down and that it would probably be best if he just gave him some time. Squall honestly felt guilty about this, somehow knowing that Cloud would react in this manner if he ever found out about his true intentions. He didn't mean for Cloud to think of him as just using him to get rid of Rinoa, he did care about Cloud as a person.

Squall was beginning to see just how badly he screwed this up as he grabbed a bag of clothes once he finished dressing himself. He heard the shower going off, which might be a good sign that Cloud was calming down a bit. He figured he could stay with Zack for the night. Maybe Cloud just needed the night to process things then it would be safe for Squall to approach him.

That was it, Cloud only needed a night.

He hoped that was all that Cloud needed.

This was a very delicate situation that could blow up into a complete disaster. Squall couldn't believe that he screwed things up this badly in less than five minutes. It was so utterly stupid of him to even say that in the first place, he couldn't believe his lack of sense slipped in such a short period of time.

So once Squall was fully dressed and out of the apartment, he threw what little clothes he could pack into his truck. He turned up to the apartment window to see that Cloud was there with a towel wrapped around his waist. Acid began to build up in Squall's throat as he thought about just horribly he screwed things up.

As for Cloud, he could only feel the bitter sting of betrayal. Sure, it could be argued that he was using Squall to get away from Sephiroth. However, there was something that would fundamentally put that argument to bed. Cloud was already in love with Squall, he had been in love with Squall for a long time before then. Squall, on the other hand, that was left a mystery. Cloud wasn't sure of Squall's feelings for him, all he knew that he was used and played with for the last time.

In the end, Cloud had officially given up on love and was through with men.

* * *

With one relationship ruined by uncertainties, another was going to be picked apart.

Zexion and Lexaeus decided to spend their day out on a simple date. They hadn't been on a date since New Year's when they went to Aqua's New Year's Eve party. It was supposed to be an out of control, freak feast that didn't disappoint anyone. Aqua always knew how to throw the best parties, something that even Zexion had to admit was completely amazing.

The two had a blast together, and so did all the other guests. It was also the night where Lexaeus and Zexion made their relationship officially public with everyone else. There were plenty suspicions of them being together once people found out about Lexaeus's transfer to Alpha High and getting kicked out of the house. There was that and a few people who went to the failed wedding did catch sight of Lexaeus and Zexion running off together.

Right now though, they were at the movies as they enjoyed the day together. They were watching some ridiculous comedy that was good for a few laughs and a few, bad jokes. Zexion had knocked the empty seats down and used them to put his legs up, while he rested against Lexaeus's hard muscles. Lexaeus had his arm wrapped over Zexion chest with a box of popcorn sitting on his lap and their soda in his left hand.

It was such a peaceful day for the young couple that both boys were just thrilled by how well these last, few months had been. Lexaeus was still living with the Fairs since Zack got legal custody of him until he graduated in two weeks. Zack and his family treated Lexaeus wonderfully, they treated him almost like a second son. Sora simply loved Lexaeus because he was all big and tough, even tougher then Terra. Plus, Lexaeus never got tired of playing games with him like his own cousins did.

Terra and Zexion were a little jealous about Sora siding with Lexaeus, but then they began to realize that benefited them more. It meant they were guaranteed some freedom away from their little cousin. The brothers learned to accept that as a good thing and sent Lexaeus off to play with Sora when they couldn't deal with him.

Then there were the days when Riku would come over and that would be a complete mess.

Other than that, everything was just perfect!

Zexion was perfectly content with the way his life was going. His arm was still a little itchy from the cast he had removed ages ago, but other than that things were perfect. Yes, it was all just fine and dandy almost like the Heavens decided to say that everything in his life would run smoothly without a single bump on the road. He had a sexy boyfriend who loved him, good friends who had his back, a brother who'd kill for him, a cousin who worshipped him, and an uncle who supported him.

As for Lexaeus, even he could admit that things were improving for him. Now that his dad was no longer part of his life and wanted nothing more to do with him, things only got better. He got a part-time job at the diner so he wasn't totally free-loading off of Zack and his family. He got some pretty solid tips, especially since Zexion started to dress him up in clothes that showed off more of his ASSets to the customers. He was grateful to have Zexion in his life, he was happy that Terra no longer wanted to kill him for what his dad did, and he was lucky to have Zack's family looking out for him.

Yup, everything was just perfect!

When the moving finally ended, Lexaeus and Zexion walked out of the theater with their hands locked as they practically skipped out of there. Both were just so dorky and in love that they didn't care who was watching or judging them. It didn't matter to either one what anyone thought of their relationship. Sure, it might have been a little weird since they were both so different.

Lexaeus was built like a brick wall, he was very compassionate, and he also was friendly to everyone around him. Zexion was neurotic, very clingy to those he cared for, and also had a mean, sarcastic streak in him. It could be said that it was their differences that brought them closer together, which made their relationship stronger. They were like day and night. It was their differences that complimented the other and made their connection deeper with their love only growing stronger with each passing moment.

It was remarkable that they both felt such a way for one another, but that's just how they felt.

Lexaeus drove them back to the house in his car, both of them laughing about the ridiculous move that they just saw.

"Remind me why we decided to see it?" asked Zexion.

"Because that was the only movie that wasn't sold out," said Lexaeus.

"And I can see why," said the lilac headed boy. "That was two hours of my life that I'm never going to get back."

"Well, if someone didn't wait to get up so late and took forever to great ready," said Lexaeus.

Zexion grabbed onto his arm, startling Lexaeus a bit just as he was about to stop. Lexaeus slammed at the breaks at that point, but Zexion didn't release his hold on him. "Do you really want to start a fight with me about this?" said Zexion.

"Are you trying to kill us!" shouted the auburn haired youth. "Zexion, I'm trying to drive here."

"And I'm warning you not to pick a fight with me about my hair!"

"Fine, you win, crazy," Lexaeus said.

With that done with, they made it back to the Fair house and sang along to an Adam Lambert song that was playing on the radio. But as they approached the house, Zexion felt something was a little off when Lexaeus parked on the curb. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary at first, but he still felt that there was something weird. It was like all his spidey senses were tingling at once, which was something he learned to follow carefully.

Lexaeus noticed just how cautious Zexion was being as they walked towards the house. He wrapped a comforting arm around his waist, which helped to make Zexion feel a little better. They carefully entered the house to see something when Zexion nearly gasped when he saw who was standing in their living room with Zack and Aerith.

Zexion was in shock, while Lexaeus tried to figure out just who the man was.

The man wore a black suit that looked positively great on his body. He looked to be in his forties, maybe his fifty, but his physique and flawless skin didn't show any signs of this. His black hair was cut short with faint, gray hairs peaking out form it. He was way taller than Zack was, but there also seemed to be a slight resemblance between the two.

And that's how Lexaeus put the pieces together since he did know that Zack had an older brother.

"Dad," Zexion said, choking the words out, "what are you doing here?"

Angeal Hewley turned around to face his youngest son. There was a slight grin on his face, while Zack and Aerith shared slightly disappointed looks. They simply had to step aside though because they had no rights in this case. Besides, Angeal Hewley was never one to be defied, not even by his own family.

"Isn't it obvious, Zexion?" said Angeal. "I'm here to take you home."

That's how Zexion's perfect world came to a crash.


	13. Come Into My World

Author's note: GASP! The second to last chapter! EEEEEE! This sets up the ending pretty well with a big surprise for you all at the end. Its a happy surprise though! YAY! Read and review.

"**Come Into My World" by Kylie Minogue:**

**Come, come, come into my world,  
Won't you lift me up, up, high upon your love.**

**Take these arms that were made for lovin',  
And this heart that will beat for two,  
Take these eyes that were meant for watching over you,  
And I've been such a long time waiting for someone I can call my own,  
I've been chasing the life I'm dreaming, now I'm home.**

* * *

It was a complete and utter nightmare!

Terra was raging mad that his father was back in town, but he was mostly mad with what Angeal was trying to do to them. Angeal wanted his sons to move back to California once the school year was over. He said that the boys made significant progress during their stay in New Jersey, but now he wanted them to come back home. It was a long fight and Terra barely managed to get out of it alive.

Angeal agreed to let Terra stay, however, since Zexion was still a minor, he had to go. There was nothing that anyone could do about this. Angeal only gave temporary guardianship to Zack, which he had the right to revoke at any time. Zexion was hell-bent on not leaving and tried every card that he had up his sleeve to get out of this. There was nothing that Zexion could come up with wouldn't work against him. When Angeal Hewley was determined enough to get something, there was no way that he was letting anyone deny him.

Zexion was going to have to return to California without Terra.

There was nothing that Terra could do to stop him, which is what pissed him off most! Terra was completely powerless against his father and Zexion was going to be taken away from him in only two weeks. Once Zexion was finished with his classes for the year, he was going to be sent back to California with their dad. And without Terra and Lexaeus there to take care of him, who knew just what type of slippery slope that Zexion would slip on.

Terra slammed his door shut, startling Ventus who was on his bed. Terra didn't apologize for that, but simply threw himself on the bed and gave out a dramatic yell that broke the sound barrier. Ven covered his ears and managed to block most of it out. Now, at least he knew that Zexion's screaming was genetic or it was something that the brothers learned to do together.

Ventus was already caught up on the situation, he heard everything from Terra and Zexion about their constant battle against their dad. From what Ven understood, their dad was a bit of a hardass who didn't like to be told no. The man couldn't handle anyone defying him, which Ven saw was a genetic trait since the brothers behaved in the exact same way. He didn't want to go that far though since the brothers were already pissed about their dad even being there.

"Maybe he'll change his mind when he sees how happy Zexion is," Ven said, wrapping his arms around Terra's chest. He pressed his lips on top Terra's spiky head as he attempted to comfort his boyfriend. "It's possible that he could change his mind though. I'm sure even he'll realize that it'll be wrong take Zexion from everyone like this."

"You clearly do not know my father," Terra said, bitterly. "Angeal Hewley has no soul. He sent us away because he couldn't 'control' us. Before he kicked us out, the man has spent more than five minutes even talking to us a week! He didn't do this to help us, he did this because he didn't want to deal with us. Now, he's trying to take credit for something he had nothing to do with! Zack's been more of a father then he has since mom died."

Ven leaned closer towards him, holding onto Terra for dear life. His head rolled a little to the side so that he could see the pissed off scowl on his face. "Have you told him that?" asked the blond. "Have you told your dad how bad he is at his job? Have you actually tried to talk to him without pointing fingers or yelling at each other? Maybe if you just sat down and talked like proper human beings then he might hear you out and figure something else."

"Like I said before," said Terra, "dad won't listen. You're welcome to try though." Terra had no idea just what thoughts he sparked in Ventus's head. But he did feel lighter since Ven released his hold on him and jumped off from the bed like a little kid who just got up on Christmas morning. "Where are you going, Ven? You're not leaving me right now, are you?"

"No," said Ven. "I'm just going to work on a miracle for you and Zexion! Just give me five minutes!"

"Ven!" said Terra.

"Five minutes!" Ven shouted as he ran out of the room.

Terra watched as Ventus fled, wondering just what the hell was going on in the boy's head.

If only Terra had the slightest clue what Ven had brewing up that pretty head of his.

* * *

Ventus ran up the stairs until he reached the living room where Zack and Angeal were discussing Zexion's relocation. It was obvious that Zack was in pain about letting go of his nephew so suddenly. Apparently, Angeal snuck up on everyone when he made his way to Jersey. Nobody knew that he was coming and nobody even imagined that he was going to do this.

Sora was running around them too, but he wasn't as warm to Angeal as he was to everyone else. Even Sora could sense the hostility in the house despite being only a little kid. Plus, Angeal never played fun games with him like his cousins, Lexaeus, and Ven did. As far as Sora was concerned, his Uncle Angeal was a big meanie pants who needed to pull the stick from his booty!

Ventus made his way into the living room, sucking up all his courage since he knew he was going to need it. He carefully approached the two men as he figured that this was going to be the only shot he was going to get to save Zexion's hide. "Excuse me, Mr. Hewley," Ven said, politely. His soft voice gained both of the men's attention with the blond making his way towards them. "Is it alright if we talk for a moment?"

"Who are you again?" Angeal asked.

"This is Ventus," Zack said to his brother. "He's Terra's boyfriend."

"Oh," said Angeal. "Alright then, do you mind giving us some privacy then, Zack?"

"Sure," Zack said, getting up from the sofa. "Come on, Sora. Let's fix you something to eat."

"Peanut butter and jelly?" asked Sora.

"That sounds good," Zack said, laughing as he picked his son up.

Once they were gone, Ventus made his way over to the sofa but didn't sit. He wasn't there to be comfortable, he was there to keep his boyfriend and his brother from being split apart. "I was wondering if we could talk about your sons," said the blond.

"You're not going to convince me to leave Zexion here," Angeal said, already knowing where this was going. "I'm taking Zexion home and that's final."

"But are you sure what you're doing is the right thing?" asked Ventus. "Terra and Zexion are so close, it would kill them if you ripped them apart like this. I don't mean any disrespect or to question your better judgment, but I just want to make sure you're not making any hasty discussions about any of this."

Angeal watched the boy, carefully, for a moment with a grin forming on his face. It was the same grin that Terra had whenever he was thinking about something. "You're a lot more polite then the others that Terra dated," Angeal said, smiling at him. "The last girl he dated was a complete nightmare to be around. I think he only dated her to piss me off."

"Well, my parents always taught me to respect my elders," Ven told him. "Plus, I know how Zexion and Terra are. They're too rash and hostile that it's impossible for them to have a proper conversation without getting into a fight. That's why I figured it would be better if I talked to you instead. I'm not trying to force you into changing your mind, I just want you to take the time to think about what you're doing."

"If I don't change my mind then will you convince my sons to respect that?" asked Angeal.

"I can only work so many miracles at a time," said Ven. "I'm not Jesus."

Angeal got a laugh out of that one as he relaxed on the sofa, throwing one arm off the end. He took a position that was awfully similar to how Terra would whenever they were sitting together on the couch. The similarities between the two were simply outstanding that it made Ven wonder just how far all of this went back. Then it made him wonder why Zack was so vastly different from all of them when he noticed they had different last names too.

"Can I ask you a personal question?" asked Ven.

"Depends on how personal it is," said Angeal.

"Why do you and Zack have different last names? I know you two are brothers, but I don't get why you're Hewley but he's Fair."

"We're half-brothers," Angeal said to him. "Same mother, different father. Didn't the boys tell you that?"

"I guess I never really paid attention until now," Ven confessed. "Well, I suppose that's all I wanted to ask. It was nice talking to you, Mr. Hewley."

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Ventus," said Angeal.

Ven started to walk back towards the basement with hopes that he did manage to reach out to Angeal even the slightest bit.

* * *

The awkwardness between Cloud and Squall grew to new levels during their two weeks apart.

Squall went back to stay with the Fair family, but now that he was unemployed that made Aerith a little hostile. To try and keep the woman from killing him, he offered to do all the house work at least so he didn't total free-load off of them. That calmed Aerith down enough so where his stay was a little more pleasant, but with Angeal there that made it a little more troublesome. He was sleeping on the spare bed in Sora's room since Zexion was sleeping down with Lexaeus in the basement. He now dealt with the kid's snoring, which made him understand why Zexion was always so irritable in the mornings.

There was also the emotional pain that he was going through from being apart from Cloud. Squall hated this, he hated just how bad he screwed things up with Cloud that it just broke his heart. He never intended to hurt Cloud like this, he never wanted things to come out like this. He wanted Cloud to like him, but he screwed that up by making the mistake of saying that he "used" him to end the wedding. He never meant it like that and Cloud kicked him out of the house before he had the chance to explain this to him.

He needed to see Cloud today before it was too late.

Cloud was dealing with the loneliness that came from getting rid of Squall from his life. He no longer got to wake up in the brunet's arms, he never had to cook for them, he never had to watch him stretch for his morning run, and he never had someone there to help him clean up the diner. It was exactly like how his life was before he got together with him, but before he ever met Sephiroth. Life was just so boring and meaningless again that Cloud started to fall into a terrible depression because of it.

He was barely eating, only when it was absolutely necessary. He wasn't treating the customers as well as he probably should. And even his staff was suffering through the rough patch that Cloud was going through. Multiple times, the other managers had to step in and tell Cloud to go up to his apartment and promise that they would take care of everything. Luckily enough, Cloud always managed to listen to them and went off to his apartment to wallow in his depression, while watching Glee reruns.

And that's how Cloud spent another day. He sat on his sofa with his TV playing the reruns from seasons 1 & 2. Not even Kurt's snappy remarks, Rachel's bitchy personality, Finn's stupidity, and Brittany's random comments could snap him out of his funk. He was so desperately, heartbroken and that's how he would spend the remainder of his days on Earth because Squall broke his heart. He would forever remain in this hopeless state with nothing out there that could keep him going.

That was until he heard the door knocking, which he assumed was Donny to tell him how they were doing so far.

Cloud pulled himself up from the sofa and dragged his feet towards the door. He opened the door and was about to tell Donny to tell them how the diner was doing after they closed when he saw that it wasn't Donny. Instead of a geeky, red head, Cloud was greeted by a solemn faced Squall who looked like he hadn't been getting much sleep.

"What do you want?" Cloud asked, angrily.

"I just want to apologize to you," Squall said, softly. "I didn't mean to hurt you and that's not how I meant to tell you about the wedding."

"So either way you were still just using me, you were just going to say it in a nicer way?"

"But it wasn't like that at all," Squall said, trying to convince Cloud of that.

Cloud just rolled his eyes as he tried to slam the door on Squall. However, Squall jammed his foot in the doorway to keep the door from shutting. He begged for Cloud to give him just five minutes to convince him that he wasn't being used. Cloud bit the bottom of his lip, wanting to believe Squall, but also wanting to shoot him in the dick.

He caved though, letting him inside the apartment.

Squall stayed by the door since he didn't want to push his luck with Cloud. He made sure to keep his distance too since he knew that Cloud had a pretty good punch in him. "Yes, I wanted you to stop the wedding," Squall said to him, "but not because I knew I could get you to do it. I did it because I like you, Cloud, and I was certain that you would help me out of this situation I was in. I knew that you would help me through it because you're such a kind, caring person."

"You could've told me though," said Cloud. "You could've just said something in the first place. You didn't have to put me through all of that."

"I know…I'm sorry, Cloud," said Squall.

"How can I be certain that you even really care about me if you've never even told me you love me?" said Cloud. "You know I love you, Squall! You know how much you mean to me, what I've gone through. I don't even know that simple thing about you though. I don't even know if you truly care about me! This only proved that maybe I can't trust you and that we just weren't meant to be. I love you, Squall, but I don't know if I can do this. I think you need to leave."

As Cloud was about to push him out, Squall made his desperate attempt to save this relationship. He couldn't afford to lose Cloud because he just couldn't live without him. He couldn't give up on somebody who he so desperately cared about! He couldn't give up on somebody that he…loved.

Squall snatched onto Cloud's hand, bringing them both closer together. He was willing to put down all his guard so he could save something that meant so much to him. "Please, Cloud, I need you to forgive me," he said, desperately. "I care about you so much. I don't want to lose you."

"I don't know, Squall."

"Cloud…I love you," Squall finally admitted to himself and Cloud. "I'm in love with you, Cloud Strife. Please, I need you."

The tension that nearly destroyed them began to melt away as Cloud completely gave in to Squall. He wrapped his arms around him with Squall doing the same thing. The two held onto each other, refusing to let go now that it was finally known just how they felt about each other.

They both admitted that they were in love.

With three words, Squall saved the man that he loved and saved himself from being lost. As for Cloud, he was at long last able to know that he was in love with somebody who honestly loved him back.

* * *

Lexaeus wasn't about to lose Zexion after everything that they've been through. Not after they went through all that trouble to get together, he refused to let Zexion go back to California. So that's when he came up with the plan that would save them both from being lost. It was reckless and it was dangerous, but it was the only thing that they could do to save each other.

"I want you to run away with me," Lexaeus told Zexion.

Zexion sat in Lexaeus's car with his eyes wide in shock. When Lexaeus told him that he was taking him out for a drive this was the last thing that he expected to hear. He knew that Lexaeus wanted to talk to him, but he couldn't believe that it was about this. He couldn't believe that Lexaeus, of all people, would come up with this plan to runaway together.

It was perfect.

"Do you mean it?" Zexion asked him. "Where would even go? I can't exactly work either, well, at least not without dropping out."

"I have some money saved up," Lexaeus confessed, "and Xaldin's brother is moving out of his apartment in New York. He said that he'll give it to us. The rent isn't that expensive and it is in a decent neighborhood so we don't have to worry about being killed. He even told me that he could get me a job as a bouncer at this club he's working at. It won't be so bad, I promise."

"You had this planned out for a while," Zexion said, seeing how well the plan was woven together. "This is what you were already thinking about doing after graduation?"

"Since my dad kicked me out," said Lexaeus. "I figured I could come back to Alpha on the weekend or you could even convince Terra to drive you up there. But this works out so much better though!" He practically jumped out of his seat as he took hold of Zexion's hands. He held onto them with care as he smiled at his beautiful boyfriend. "You don't want to leave and I don't want you to go. We can be together now, and you won't be that far from you brother. I bet Terra would even follow us there once Ven graduates."

Zexion nodded his head, totally seeing Terra doing that. Terra has only been talking about moving to New York since they were kids. They both loved California, but New York was like the center of the entire world. But Zexion really needed to think about it. Could he really do something so reckless and stupid without any regret in the future? Was he willing to give it all up just for some boy?

"You could always try acting too," Lexaeus said, trying to sweeten the pot. "I know how much you like theater and performing, plus you're dramatic enough that you could pull off any role. Imagine performing on Broadway!"

A smile crept up Zexion's face as he really thought about it. Everything that Lexaeus was saying sounded just so fantastic that he couldn't say no even if he wanted to. "Alright!" Zexion said, happily. "I've decided that I'm going to go with you! I want to run away to New York with you and never look back!"

"Great!" Lexaeus said, leaning forward to kiss Zexion. "We leave the morning of the last day of school. We act like everything is fine that I'm going to drop you off like usual, but we're going to have everything packed in my trunk. We take off after that though."

"And nobody can stop us!" said Zexion. "It's the perfect plan."

"I thought so too," Lexaeus said.

They both leaned in to kiss each other again, while the sun was setting.

* * *

When the fateful morning finally came, Zexion had butterflies fluttering all around his stomach as he put his uniform on for the last time. Although, he wasn't going to school, they needed to keep up with appearances. Everything was running smoothly so far. Last night, Terra helped them to sneak their stuff into Lexaeus's car that way they would be ready. Their dad was supposed to take Zexion back home that Sunday so they needed to act fast without a single bump.

Zexion said his goodbye to Sora, but made it look like a simple goodbye. He didn't want to tell his cousin that he was leaving for good since Sora did have a big mouth. There was no way he was going to risk things so he kept it as inconspicuous as possible.

Once he finished getting dressed, he made his way downstairs and was ready to put his act on. He needed to be as hostile to his father as possible so not to raise any suspicions. Terra was already gone to get Ventus and Aqua since they wanted to say goodbye to him too. Almost everyone was in on the plan, except for their aunt and uncle. They were excluded from the circle because they wanted to make sure nobody would rat them out to Angeal.

Lexaeus was already waiting for him in the kitchen with some breakfast there. The two ate in silence just as Angeal came into the kitchen to take what was left. Zexion played his part flawlessly, scowling at his dad every chance that he got. It got to the point where Angeal just shouted at Zexion to leave and go to school already.

The boys took advantage of this and raced out of the door like they were really scared. They took off in Lexaeus's car, which was stuffed with their belongings. They put as much as they could into the trunk, and what couldn't fit they hid in the backseat.

Lexaeus pretended to drive them to the school for a minute before heading off to the Denny's that they were meeting at to say goodbye. He parked in the parking lot, right next to Terra's car. Once the engine was cut off, everyone began to come out so that their goodbyes could be said.

Aqua launched herself at Zexion, squeezing the life out of the poor boy. "You owe me a weekend in New York!" she told him. "You got that, Zexy? I'm going to show you how they party up there."

"It's a deal, Aqua," laughed Zexion.

Ventus took her place and hugged Zexion for a moment. He pulled back, brushing his blond bangs back a little with a soft smile on his face. "Take care of yourself, Zexion," he said, softly.

"Take care of my brother," Zexion told him. "He's going to be a mess without me around."

"I will," Ventus said, smiling at him.

Terra and Zexion hugged each other next, while Aqua and Ven said goodbye to Lexaeus. The brothers held onto each other for a long moment and refused to let each other go for a while. Terra finally decided to end the hug and kissed his brother's forehead.

"Be careful, Zex," said Terra. "If you ever need me just call and I'll be up there in the hour."

"I'll miss you too, Terra," said Zexion. "I love you, dum dum."

"I love you too, spoiled brat," said Terra.

Terra turned his sights to Lexaeus with his hands on his waist. He shot daggers at the auburn headed, muscle man before finally shaking his head with a smile replacing the scowl. "You'd better take good care of my little brother, otherwise, I'm going to kill you," he told Lexaeus.

"I'm more worried about my own, well being," laughed Lexaeus. "I'm pretty sure that Zexion will be the one trying to kill me."

"You can bet your sweet ass," Zexion said, winking at him.

The others started to laugh with that just as Terra got his wallet out. He took out a few bills and handed them over to Lexaeus. "It's not much," said the brunet, "but it should help with at least a month's worth of rent. It'll help keep a roof of your heads for a little longer."

"Thanks man," Lexaeus said, calmly.

Terra simply nodded his head, hiding the tears he had for his brother leaving him.

Everyone waved each other goodbye just as Lexaeus and Zexion returned to the car. Lexaeus started his car up right before Terra did. Zexion listened to the familiar roar of Terra's engine just as he removed the jacket from his body. He had a few tears escape him as Lexaeus drove from the parking lot with Terra and the others going in the opposite direction.

"You're not regretting your decision, right?" asked Lexaeus.

"No, it's just a little hard to say goodbye," said Zexion. "I know that you'll take care of me though…I needed to step out of my brother's shadow sooner or later."

Lexaeus took hold of Zexion's hand, promising that he would take care of him. The two shared a brief kiss before Lexaeus jumped on the expressway and started to head off towards New York. The two began their new journey together, where a new beginning was waiting for them.


	14. Happy

Author's Note: WOO! Here is the final chapter for the story. It was fun while it lasted, but all good things must come to an end! I hope you guys like this chapter and that you read my next stories. Well...read and review!

"**Happy" by Never Shout Never:**

**You make me happy whether you know it or not,  
We should be happy that's what I said from the start,  
I am so happy knowing you are the one  
That I want for the rest of my days, for the rest of my days,  
Yeah, all of my days.**

**

* * *

**

In the aftermath of Zexion and Lexaeus's great escape, Angeal stormed out of New Jersey fuming mad! He spent a month trying to track Zexion down, but Terra made it perfectly clear that Zexion wanted nothing more to do with him. Terra then handed over Zexion's cell phone, telling him that there was no chance in hell he could track him now. Angeal gave up after that and returned to California a defeated man.

Things were awkward between everyone at first. Aerith and Zack were mad about what Terra and the others did, but they were relieved at the same time. Everyone knew that only bad things would've happened to Zexion if he left with Angeal. They all believed that this was all for the better and, in the end; Zexion would have a happier ending this way.

So in the two years that passed after that, Terra and Ventus's relationship only grew more.

Now that Ven had graduated from high school, he was attending the local college just until Terra finished up getting his degree. They had started that band they've been dreaming about with Aqua, Roxas, and Axel in it as well. It was originally just the two of them, but when that got to be too stressful, they added the other three to the mix. That was by far the smartest thing that they did since the Broken Pods were popular in the county that sang alternative/emo/punk rock.

Terra had moved out from the basement and had his own apartment in town with Ven living with him now. They were both blissfully happy as they spent their days together: falling asleep together, waking up together, showering together, and eating together. They were always together, but they never suffered through the annoying issues that many couples went through.

If anything, Terra and Ven were above that since they were so comfortable with each other. It was a pain to be together two years ago with everything that was going on before. None of that mattered anymore since all that drama was as dead as high school. So long as they had each other, they both knew that they could handle anything that came their way.

Terra's relationship with his brother hadn't changed so much either. The brothers were still as close as ever with Terra taking constant trips up to New York to bother Zexion and his boyfriend. Ven was always dragged along for the ride with Aqua sneaking out with them on occasion. She was always supposed to be working, but she managed to sneak away plenty of times without any trouble.

As for Ven's relationship with his brothers, it was different now with everything that happened. He was much closer to Roxas now after the Vanitas Incident. It was almost like they were kids again; back to be the annoying twins that were always together and driving everyone insane. Roxas was no longer as angsty as he was before. He had opened up considerably now that he was close to Ven again.

And Vanitas, nobody spoke of him as he slowly rotted away in jail.

"I think I'm going to throw up," Ven said, looking out at the crowd of people.

"Dude, chill out, you'll be fine," said Axel.

"Yeah Ven," said Roxas. "It's like all our other gigs, just a bigger crowd."

"You'll sing fabulously as always," Aqua said, winking at him.

Ven just shook his head as he pulled away from the thick curtain. His stomach was rumbling uncontrollably with him sliding down to the ground with so many uncertainties in his head. "I don't think so," he told them. "We've never opened up for such big bands. We're talking about All Time Low and The Maine! I don't know if I can do this."

Aqua, Roxas, and Axel turned over to Terra who had just came back from his bathroom break. They all pointed at Ven, which was their special signal for telling him that Ven was having another breakdown. Terra simply sighed as he promised that he would take care of it, again.

Terra crouched to his knees and held onto Ven's hands. This got the blue-eyed boy to look up at him with Terra shooting a smile at him. "You know that you're the best singer out there, right?" Terra said to him. "You'll kill the crowd like you do at every other show. You want to know why, because you're Ventus fucking Hart! Plus, it doesn't hurt that you have my sexy ass to back you up."

A smirk grew on Ven's face as he squeezed Terra's hands. He smiled back at him, slowly getting back up on his feet. "You're awesome, you know that?" he said, softly. "What would I do without you to pull me back from the edge of madness?"

"You'd start throwing up on stage, which isn't pretty," said Terra.

Ven just shook his head as he kissed Terra on the lips just as the crew informed them that they needed to get on stage, right now.

The five of them nodded their heads and took their places on stage, ready to give the best performance of their lives.

* * *

A lot of things had changed for Squall and Cloud too. It may not have been as drastic and earth-shattering as the others, but it was still important to them. It also sparked the development in their relationship as it began to grow to new levels.

Squall managed to open up his own auto shop thanks to a loan that Cloud gave him. Apparently, the diner made way more money than Squall ever knew. This big boom in business came from a Travel Channel special that they filmed at the diner about local, northeast diners. Cloud's popped up in there and became a smash hit that tourists practically flocked in to try his food.

The loan helped Squall start his own business, which gave them a decent supply of revenue by the end of the first year. Squall sold everything that was needed for cars, at a price that was lower than most of the other shops in town. Plus, since he was a certified mechanic, he would install that parts himself, which made him all the more appealing to car owners.

Like it was mentioned before, Cloud's business was booming thanks to the added publicity. He even started up a new food challenge because of all the business he was getting, hoping that it would help the diner out even more. He called it the "Triple Challenge", which consisted of a milkshake, a triple patty cheeseburger, and an order of large fries. The entire plate needed to be cleared in an hour and they needed to hold it down for another five minutes. So far, fifty-six people have tried it, but only ten managed to finish the whole challenge without throwing up.

Now, their relationship was a little trickier, but there were bright sides to it.

The initial drama about Squall "using" Cloud was still buried underneath everything as they tried to move past that. Cloud still found himself wondering if he could trust Squall at times, but that would all get pushed aside whenever Squall smiled at him. All his insecurities seemed to melt away and Cloud was never happier until he saw his boyfriend walk in through the door after coming back from work.

It was a good feeling that he wouldn't replace for the world.

Squall still knew he had a long way to go before he could get rid of all of Cloud's insecurities though. After being used for so long, it would take more than a simple "I love you" to break through all of the walls that Cloud had build up around him. It wasn't so bad though because every day, Squall saw that the walls were slowly crumbling down and he knew that he was doing things right.

Their lives were going swimmingly as they spent their days together.

Cloud still couldn't believe that Squall went through all the trouble to prepare this dinner for them. He took the day off from work to go to the doctor and do all his other running around only to be surprised to return to the diner to see it empty. He wondered what happened when he saw a table in the middle of the walkway with a single candle lit on it with his good plates brought down from the apartment. Squall then came in from the kitchen with two steaks and a few side dishes in his hands.

The surprise, romantic dinner was a nice change for him. Cloud was so happy to see that he didn't have to cook for once, and he was more amazed just how nicely dressed up for the night. Squall wore one of his best suits that he only wore when he needed to actually dress up for professional reasons. It had been such a long time since he saw that suit, which was when they were doing one of their kinkier sex games, that he forgot how it looked on him.

As the night went on, Cloud was in for another, big surprise once the plates were cleared.

Squall went over to Cloud before suddenly dropping down on one knee. Cloud raised an eyebrow for a moment when he saw that Squall pulled a small box from his pocket and held it up. "Cloud Strife," said the brunet, "will you do the honor of marrying me?" He pulled the lid up to show off the silver ring that he had made for him.

For a moment, Cloud was left speechless as he looked from the ring to Squall. He tried to say a word, but he couldn't find himself able to speak a single word. So, he just threw himself at Squall and hugged him with all his might. Squall took that as a yes and hugged Cloud back, knowing that this wedding wouldn't end as tragically for him as the one with Rinoa did.

"Yes!" Cloud finally managed to shout. "I'll marry you!"

"That took you long enough," laughed Squall.

The two locked lips with Squall carefully sliding the ring onto Cloud's finger.

* * *

As for the runaways, Zexion and Lexaeus were on their own in the city where dreams were made.

The apartment that they moved into wasn't so bad, which was shocking to Zexion. When Lexaeus told him that the apartment had a low rent and was in a decent neighborhood, Zexion had his suspicions. He was honestly surprised that the place wasn't full of roaches or prostitutes. That didn't stop Zexion from scrubbing the place down before they spent their first night there.

After the initial, awkward transition to this life, they managed to find a happy place between them that made things worked. They adjusted fabulously to life in New York, blending in almost as well as any of other million New Yorkers. Sure, the city was twice as cold as Jersey was, something Zexion forgot for a moment, but they survived the winters by snuggling up together as often as possible. Lexaeus was better at keeping warm then any Snuggie that they had out on the market, which was something Zexion had two of since he liked to be extra warm.

It was all pretty good for them. Whenever Terra and the others came to visit them, it would always be a party in the apartment. They all had a blast together with Terra supply the liquor for the fun, while they heard how things were in Alpha. They exchanged all their stories about how well they were doing and for a moment it felt like they never even left New Jersey.

Occasionally, Zack and Aerith would come see them too. They'd always bring Sora along who always yelled at Zexion for leaving without telling him. Zexion always made it up to him though by a large pizza with his name all of it that Sora consumed without hesitation.

But in order to continue to keep a roof over their heads and heat on during the winter, they needed to get jobs. Lexaeus got a job at a club, working as a bouncer there, which Zexion thought was hilarious and sexy. His first night on the job, Zexion surprised him by bringing Aqua along for that crazy night that he promised her. As for Zexion, he got his GED and worked at a restaurant as a waiter, while pursing the acting dream. He got a few, small parts in the occasional play, but he was holding out for something bigger.

"Oh my god!" Zexion screamed as he ran into their bedroom.

Lexaeus was half-asleep since he was recovering from a long day at work. He didn't get out until about five and only got about four hours of sleep before Zexion came screaming. Zexion jumped on the bed to wake his boyfriend up, who was grumbling at him like a bear.

Zexion just rolled his eyes as he began to tweak Lexaeus's nipples since the man hated wearing shirts to bed. That got a smile to grow on Lexaeus's face since he did have sensitive nipples that always gave Zexion the upper hand in bed. When he finally got up, Zexion said that he had uber big news for him.

"What is it?" Lexaeus said, grumbling still. "I was having such a nice dream."

"Well, a dream is about to be real!" Zexion said, excitedly. "I got the part! I'm going to be in a musical on...BROADWAY!"

That easily woke Lexaeus up, no longer feeling even a bit sleepy. He wrapped his arms around Zexion and dragged him down to the bed with Zexion laughing as Lexaeus began to kiss his neck. "That is fucking incredible!" he finally said. "I'm so happy for you, Zexion! This…this is big! Do you have any idea just how big this is?"

"Bigger than your dick?" Zexion asked, feeling the bulge in his pants.

A dirty smile formed on Lexaeus's lips as he kissed Zexion again. His stubbly faced hovered over Zexion's face for a moment as he began to run a hand up his side. "Not quite, but close," he said with a husky voice.

"Morning sex, perfect," Zexion said as he began to slide out of his clothes.

"Very much," Lexaeus said as he pulled down his pants.

The two began to make love that morning, both of them floating on a heavenly high.

Everything was just perfect between them, all of them.

It didn't have to be so scary; starting a new beginning when you had someone you loved by your side.


End file.
